Run
by sugarcandyaddiction
Summary: Seniors in high school, the boys have a chance encounter with an old childhood friend and are shocked to find out where she ended up.
1. Chapter 1

**Run**

Summary: Seniors in high school, the boys have a chance encounter with an old childhood friend and are shocked to find out where she ended up.

Rated T for: Sexuality, Mild Language, Underage Drinking, and Adult Situations

Chapter 1:

The pristine light of morning streaming through an open window stirred Zack Martin from Slumberland and he awoke to the soft murmur of voices and muffled laughter. He looked blearily out at the bedroom half seeing a smooth white hull and a singular eye like porthole, while the cry of gulls pricked his ears. Though, what were those voices, and who was laughing, and why was the room not moving with the lull of the ocean?

Blinking the last bits of sleep away, the white hull melted into plaster and red brick, the porthole became an iron trimmed window pane glaring out at an alley, and the cries of gulls were replaced with the various sounds of the city.

Zack sighed, rubbing at his eyes as he tossed the covers off his body and stretched languidly. It had only been five months since he and his brother had returned to Boston, Massachusetts. They had spent two and a half years aboard a luxury liner, the S.S. Tipton; which housed their former floating school, Seven Seas High School but now they were high and dry on land with no hope of returning to their beloved deck.

Zack pulled on some clothes: jeans, a t-shirt, pair of socks, and opened the door as he finger-combed his hair. He found his twin brother in the living room sitting on the coach. The other boy was the source of the talking and laughing, his laptop open in front of him on the coffee table. A live video feed of a pretty brunette filled the screen; she talked with a slight mid-western accent, and had a small town, earthy air to her tone.

"Morning, Cody," Zack greeted his brother, then to the girl on the screen, "Hey, Bailey!"

Bailey was Cody's girlfriend. They'd met at Seven Seas High and while the boys had returned to Boston, she still attended school on the S.S. Tipton.

Bailey and Cody were rational individuals, so they had decided it best to break-up but remain friends, to avoid the stress of worrying about one another's fidelity while apart. For about a month Zack put up with Cody moping around the apartment and comparing every girl he came across to Bailey. Then one night they confessed to each other that not only could they never fathom dating another, they couldn't bear the thought of the other with some one else. They threw rationality to the wind and agreed to a long-distance commitment.

Now Zack had to put up with their sappy Skype conversations at the most ridiculous hours.

"That Zack?" Bailey asked, her voice muffled through the laptop speakers. She grinned from ear to ear, "Hi Zack!"

Cody just rolled his eyes on the couch, saying over his shoulder, "Actually, Zack, its afternoon. You overslept. Oh, its getting late there, isn't it, Bailey? Should be…about…ten?"

"Yeah. I guess I should probably turn in soon. My roommate is getting a little annoyed," Bailey admitted, "I miss you."

"I miss you too," Cody agreed and it was Zack's turn to roll his eyes. He headed for the refrigerator as the couple started cooing and talking in baby voices.

As Zack started munching on cold leftover pizza, Cody closed his laptop. Though the boys were twins and sported the same blond hair and soft green eyes there were differences. Both boys were slender and lined with lean muscle, but Zack was easily the bulkier of the two, and while they both enjoyed sports and had positions on the school basketball team, he was more athletically inclined as well. Cody made up for these failings, however, with intellectuality, maturity, good hygiene, and about an inch more height.

Side by side it wasn't exactly easy to determine who was who, but individually they were easily mistaken for one another and, on occasion used it to their advantage. Only their mother and a few close friends could not be fooled.

"Where are they docked right now?" Zack questioned between chews. He meant, of course, the S.S. Tipton. The cruise ship had a satellite internet connection onboard but Bailey wouldn't risk cutting out on her precious boyfriend mid-Skype conversation because of bad weather or other varying environmental factors. Generally they chatted via cell phone and Skype-d when the ship was docked.

"Madagascar," Cody replied, joining his brother in the kitchen in search of his own lunch, scowling at the pizza Zack was eating, "You could at least use a plate."

Zack shrugged, yanking the milk carton from the fridge door and taking a swig, receiving another scowl from his brother.

"How late were you out at the party last night?" Cody questioned, slightly terse, as he pulled out leftover Hamburger Helper and headed for the cupboards to remove a plate of his own.

Zack had gone out the night before with a group of friends from school; Cody opted to stay in as he had to wake up early to chat with Bailey. It also meant he could cover for Zack, as well, if their mother decided to come home that night.

When Carey Martin, the boys' mother, had originally gotten her job at the Tipton Hotel as a lounge singer, the family had lived in one of the siutes; a perk of her job. However, when the boys returned from their time at sea, she had leased an apartment claiming that she wanted them to have a normal home life instead of the spoils of living at a five star hotel.

The boys suspected it had more to do with the hotel manager, Mr. Mosby, who had spent not only the boys' childhood with them at the Tipton but their time at sea as well. He probably, finally, put his foot down. So the boys stayed at the apartment, and their mother, who often had shows late in the evening, stayed at the hotel most of the time. Sometimes she or their father would randomly check in on the boys but otherwise she put a large amount of trust in their – mostly Cody's – good judgment. Unfortunately she had underestimated Zack's ability to manipulate his, allegedly, wiser brother.

"Not long. The party was lame so we left around midnight," Zack answered.

It wasn't quite a lie. The party had been lame. Zack and a group of people, not necessarily the friends he'd gone with, had left the party about midnight. He just didn't go home right after. He didn't mention that though, as it would have prompted questions that he wasn't comfortable answering; like, where did you go and what did you do there?

"Oh good, then you'd be up for a few hoops, right?" Cody responded, heating up his food and taking it to the table to eat. Zack quirked a questioning brow so Cody went on to explain. "Jason Stenor called this morning and wanted to know if we were interested in playing a street game. He said he had one arranged but a couple of his teammates bailed. I told him sure."

Jason was on the school basketball team with the twins. He was starting point guard and a fairly decent player. While the boys got along with him well enough, they weren't exactly friends. He was probably desperate if he'd resorted to calling them. Zack subconsciously made a face but shrugged and muttered a 'sure'.

After he finished eating and with a bit of nagging from Cody, Zack went to brush his teeth and wash his face. Then he waited for his brother to finish and they left the apartment together, walking several blocks to the basketball courts.

It wasn't in the best part of town and most of the teens in the area looked like thugs and wannabe gangsters; dressed and playing the parts of criminal delinquents. The boys chose to ignore the drug deal that appeared to be going on under the bleachers and headed towards Jason, whom they spotted among a group of teenage boys, none of which the twins recognized.

Jason was tall, towering over the Martin boys, with shaggy brown hair and doe eyes. He wore an oversized jersey and large jean shorts, expensive red sneakers on his feet. He grinned toothily when the two boys approached him, though the others in the group looked at the newcomers reproachfully.

"You guys made it," Jason exclaimed, clapping Cody on the shoulder and bumping fists with Zack, "Everyone, these are the twins, Cody and Zack," he motioned to each respectively, "We're playing full court, five on five like a regular game. Call your own fouls and we're playing first team to fifty. You boys are on my team along with Jermaine and Ricky." He pointed to two boys in the group and they greeted the twins.

Jermaine was tall and lanky like Jason. He had black hair cropped close to his scalp and intense dark eyes. Ricky was short and stout. He looked like a ball of muscle with a face full of freckles, sandy colored hair, and bright blue eyes.

"Who are we playing against?" Cody questioned, looking around at the different faces in the crowd.

"Us," a husky voice piped up and the twins turned to the speaker.

The boy was shorter than Zack by about two inches and looked and sounded a few years younger than everyone else, his voice wasn't very deep. He was slender, with sinewy muscle, dressed in red mesh shorts and an oversized worn white t-shirt. Some brown strands of hair poked out from under his red beanie, and his dark brown eyes were sharp and narrowed, his mouth pursed in a frown. A basketball was tucked neatly under his arm. Standing beside him were an odd set of four boys, each rough in appearance and seemed ready to brawl rather than play.

Zack exchanged a look with Cody and both seemed to be in agreement. There was something familiar about the red-capped boy, in the way he stood and the way he spoke, but neither could put a finger on it. Zack turned his attention back to the kid and tried to catch his eye searching for recognition in that piercing gaze, but the younger boy flicked his attention to Jermaine as though dismissing the twins altogether.

"We ready to play?" he demanded and Jermaine nodded stiffly.

Cody glanced worriedly to his brother. Something didn't seem right. As the boys headed out to take position on the court, Zack caught hold of Jason's elbow.

"This is just a friendly game, right?" he questioned the other boy. Jason laughed in response.

"Friendly. Yeah. Those two are just really competitive is all," he chuckled, "Don't worry. Just play ball."

With a sigh, Zack shrugged at Cody and ushered him forward onto the court. Jermaine and redcap took position for the jump ball.

* * *

A/N: I have to admit, I'm not actually an avid viewer of the Suite Life series. I've seen a few of the first episodes, and some of the On Deck episodes. Don't get me wrong, I like the show, I just wasn't very young when it came out, so I wasn't interested. I tell you this because there will be things in this fanfic that are very unintentionally AU-ish and I apologize to the fans that will spot those things. However, some things, like the boys being back in Boston, Bailey and Cody never having broken up in Paris, etc. are intentional. Mostly because, I needed them back in Boston and I like Cody and Bailey together. The beauty of this is, I don't have to tell you which ones I intended and which are actual goofs. ;P

I'm going to try updating every few days but that's if I remember...reviews help my memory (hint, hint). I don't know if the story is very good, I personally like it. I tried to keep it in the tone of the show despite the dark subject matter, but in places the boys will seem OOC, for which, I deeply apologize. There's quite a bit of drama in later chapters also; I felt like I was on an emotional rollercoaster ride writing it, and hopefully you feel the same while reading. There's not a lot of slapstick humor or outright ridiculousness for which the show has come to rely on to get cheap laughs but I hope that some places will make you chuckle.

And now I'm rambling. So let me know what you think and I'll update soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

The elected official was a pretty blonde girl who looked about fifteen or sixteen. She wore a jean mini skirt and was chewing gum rather loudly. While blowing a bubble she tossed the ball into the air then scurried off and, despite Jermaine having the obvious advantage of height, the red-capped boy caught hold of the ball first, knocking it to a teammate in a yellow shirt. The boys took off running as yellow dribbled down court. He passed to a scrawny teammate with blue tipped hair who made the first basket.

When the ball went back into play, Ricky managed to steal it and pass to Cody who lost it to his guard, a boy with bright red hair and stormy eyes, only for Zack to recover and shoot a two pointer. A few points were made for each team with little scuffle.

In play, Jason had control of the ball. He dribbled down court and lost the ball to redcap who, slamming into Cody on the turn around, fell back onto the pavement hard. The boy hissed in pain as the ball rolled away. The boys' teammates and the Martin twins froze, as Ricky ran to retrieve the ball.

"Oh wow, sorry, that was definitely a foul," Cody exclaimed, extending a hand to the boy on the ground, who quickly scanned a scrapped and bloodied elbow. The red-capped boy sent a glare up at his opponent and smacked the hand away before pulling himself to his feet.

"No. It's fine," the boy snarled, stalking back to his teammates and Cody stared puzzled at the retreating form. Zack sidled up next to his brother and lightly slapped his shoulder.

"Must have thought you did that on purpose," he muttered and Cody looked horrified.

"But I didn't...I wouldn't..."

"Either way, he doesn't want to lose face I guess. Don't take it personal, get your head back in the game," Zack said, punching his brother's shoulder good-naturedly once more and jogging into position.

Despite Zack's words of encouragement, though, the game seemed to take a rougher turn, as if the accidental run-in had been a declaration of war. Cody hit the ground twice, courtesy of blue-hair, gaining scraped knees and nearly spraining his wrist. Zack narrowly avoided an elbow to the eye but was tripped up once, and took an 'accidental' knee to the gut. Jason was clipped on the side of his head, and Ricky was tripped, face-planting in the gravel, scrapped all down his left cheek and just above his eye.

No one called foul but Jermaine, Jason, and Ricky did their fair share of damage as well. Yellow shirt was knocked down several times, the redhead was tripped up once accidentally by Zack who fell as well, but thrice by Jason who didn't even bother to hide the last time as a purposeful move. Ricky bloodied the fifth team member's nose and dropped blue hair with the ball to his groin. Jermaine forced redcap out of bounds and into the bleachers and the smaller boy returned to the court with a slight limp.

Sore, bloody, bruised, and drenched in sweat, the boys lined up for the final jump. Somehow they'd beaten one another into a tie.

Jermaine sneered at redcap, "Last basket wins."

The boy didn't respond, spitting on the pavement a mixture of saliva and blood from a cut on his lip.

"They're just competitive. Yeah. Right," Zack muttered sarcastically under his breath. Cody shook his head angrily, rubbing a sore shoulder. They both silently agreed this was the last time they'd ever play a street game with Jason and his friends.

Jermaine took control of the ball, slapping it to Cody who lost it to blue hair. Blue hair tossed the ball to redcap who dribbled down court, Zack close behind. He maneuvered in front of the smaller boy, effectively blocking redcap, who stood with his back to the taller. The smaller turned, glancing over his shoulder, deep brown met light green, skin – warm, soft – brushed skin, and redcap froze.

Zack swiftly slipped around, hand catching hold of the ball as his other arm brushed across redcap's waist to move the small figure aside. A strange thought popped into Zack's mind but it was gone in a flash as he took control of the ball, dribbled down court, then hit a wall of opponents and passed to Cody who shot the basket, nothing but net.

An eruption of elated cheers broke through the winning teammates as the losers groaned and jeered harshly. Zack finally glanced curiously at the red-capped boy while exchanging a high-five with Cody. Redcap was glaring at the basket, cheeks slightly pink-tinged. He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck and trudged to the bleachers, his teammates gathering on the court yelling accusations at one another.

Weird, Zack thought as his heart was pounding in his chest. In that one moment, his arm on that slim, delicate waist, his body had reacted in an embarrassing way that he didn't quite understand because redcap was a...boy? He shrugged it off.

The twins walked towards the bleachers, Cody sitting to catch his breath. Zack grinned at the red-capped boy, who was digging through a ratty backpack.

"Hey, man, good game," Zack said. Silence. Redcap stood tense, not even bothering to look at the twins, and Zack frowned. "No hard feelings, right? I mean...I'm sorry I tripped you that one time..."

"Yo," Jermaine shouted, and the twins turned their attention to him as he advanced on the red-capped boy, Jason and Ricky on his heel.

The young boy froze, licking his cut lip, and gripping tight his pack. He looked to be preparing himself for a fight.

"Where's our money?" Jermaine demanded and both twins' eyes went wide.

"What? Money? What are you talking about?" Cody asked, looking from Jermaine to Jason.

The red-capped boy seemed to steel himself, sucking in a deep breath of air, before lowering his pack to the bleachers and turning with hands in balled fists.

"Bet's off," he growled, "You're trying to cheat me. This isn't the team I agreed to play last week. You brought in ringers."

Zack and Cody exchanged a look. Sure, Zack was good and Cody had his moments, but them? Ringers? Hardly.

"Oh no you don't," Jermaine hissed, grabbing the young boy's arm and dragging him forward roughly so that the two stood nearly nose to nose, "Who's trying to cheat who?"

"We had a deal," Jason threw in, "You lost, fair and square. Now cough up the cash."

"Whoa, you guys, calm down. He's just a kid," Zack spoke up; Cody was on his feet again, standing ready beside his brother. Redcap's teammates were gone.

The red-capped boy was first to strike, catching Jermaine's jaw with a hasty jab and causing the taller boy to loosen his grip. Everything after, seemed to happen in a flash. Cody grabbed at Jason to hold him in place and Zack moved to impede Ricky. Then a struggle followed, clumsy shoving, grabbing, haphazard swings and stumbling. Jermaine locked on his target, jerking and shoving the smaller figure to the ground, ripping the red beanie off his head in the process. Jagged trestles feathered around a smooth, blood and dirt streaked face, brushing against neck and collarbone as vulnerable knees and forearm flesh drove into gravel.

Ricky flicked open a locking blade with a threatening click and everyone stopped, full attention now on the bulky teen. Jermaine grabbed the pack, ripping out a small wad of faded green and shoving it hastily in his pocket,

"Nice doing business with you," he spat to the boy on the ground then turned and took off running. Ricky and Jason pulled from the twins' grips, both of whom were paralyzed by the sudden appearance of a knife, and followed after their friend.

For a few heartbeats, Zack and Cody stared blankly in the direction the three teens had taken off in, then the young boy lifted himself from the ground and the movement shook the twins' from their trance. They turned their attention to their just-mugged companion and found themselves staring again.

The layered shoulder length hair seemed to accentuate the otherwise overlooked thick eyelashes and full lips, and upon closer inspection, beneath the baggy basketball shorts and oversized shirt was an obvious hint of curvaceous hips and small rounded breasts easily dismissed due to an otherwise very slender frame.

It seemed the red-capped boy was, in actuality, a girl.

The newly revealed young lady plucked her pack from the ground and scoured its insides, clucking her tongue in frustration, "Dammit." She threw the pack back down angrily and ran quick fingers through her hair. She was obviously trembling but there were no tears as one might expect from a girl who'd just been beaten and robbed.

Realization was dawning on Zack but Cody spoke before either boy had time to fully comprehend the current situation.

"Max?"

* * *

A/N: It always bothered me that Max's character disappeared from the show without a trace. The last episode with her character was a huge disapointment too, because they made her a total b*tch, in my opinion. I was shocked to find out while researching for this story that her character "outlasted" Tapeworm's. I felt like he'd been in the storyline longer. I don't know.

Anyhoo, I'm slightly disheartened no one has reviewed yet, though a decent number of people have checked out chapter 1. Maybe they didn't like my reasons for rating it T and ran away. T_T Or maybe readers in this fandom just aren't very good at giving feedback. I'm hoping its becasue people are still uncertain of my story and that by posting chapter 2 they'll be able to form a better opinion and feel inspired to let me know what they think.

Hopefully, hopefully...either way, thanks for dropping in.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

Dark eyes flashed at the twins then burned into the ground. The girl folded her arms over her chest, pressing the large shirt taut against her front and making her femininity all the more evident. Cody lowered his face and Zack's cheeks flushed but he kept his focus locked on the young lady.

For a fleeting moment, they weren't certain if Cody was right. It had been years since they'd last seen or spoken with Max. She'd been a close friend; one of their first when they'd initially moved to the Boston area, but as time went on, they'd grown apart then ultimately lost contact. As far as they knew, Max might of moved and didn't even live in Boston anymore.

"Hey guys, could we skip the 'wow, it's been such a long time, it's so great to see you again,' crap? Please?" the girl muttered in annoyance.

Cody and Zack blinked in unison.

"Max, it is you," Zack gaped.

"Wow, it's been a long time," Cody started only to gain an elbow to his ribs from Zack. He chuckled nervously, shrugging apologetically at the girl glaring their direction, and mumbling, "Well…it has been a long time…"

"What are you doing here?" Zack questioned as Max swiped her hat off the ground and tossed it into the open pack.

"Playing basketball. Getting robbed. What does it look like? Your friends cleaned me out. So these the kinds of people you two hang out with now, liars and cheats? Should of figured…" she sneered, lifting up her pack and slinging it over a shoulder.

"They weren't exactly friends, one of them is just a classmate. He asked us if we wanted to play a game but we had no idea about any bet," Cody clarified haughtily, then, narrowing his eyes, "What exactly are you doing making bets with guys like that, anyhow?"

"Not your business," Max replied curtly, she turned slightly, focusing on something in the distance, "Your classmate is a jerk. Those three came here last week with two guys who didn't even know how to dribble and made a bet with me. Their team against mine. Then this week they show up with you two? If they really aren't your friends, well…" she turned her eyes on the twins, "Congratulations, boys, you just got used."

The twins stood stunned as that observation slowly sank in and Max spun on her heel and started away. She paused in her retreat, momentarily, and called over her shoulder, "It was good…seeing you guys again, I mean."

"Yeah," Zack murmured, and then as though remembering something, "We should get together…catch up sometime."

"No, we really shouldn't," was all she said, and then she rounded the corner and was gone.

With Max's departure, the two had nothing left to do at the basketball park so they wordlessly started their trek home; too rattled by the recent events to say anything.

"Crazy, huh? Running into her after all these years?" Zack finally broke their silent reverie when they were halfway to the apartment, "She doesn't seem to have changed much."

"What are you talking about? She was a completely different person," Cody replied.

It was true. Max had always been a tough tomboy but before there had been a sweet and innocent playfulness about her that the Max they'd just met lacked. Teenage Max was unforgiving, unflinching, and, almost, scary. Despite having been manhandled, had a knife pulled on her, and had her cash stolen, she'd remained calm and collected, only seeming angry at the lost money. It was as though the entire incident were all in a day's work.

"Yeah. I guess. And hey, did we part on bad terms with her or something?" Zack questioned, looking thoughtful.

"Hm…? Oh, I don't remember. I don't think so. I don't even remember why or when we all stopped hanging out. She didn't seem to want to chat, huh?"

"Not really," Zack sighed, scratching his head in annoyance, "She seemed…I don't know…mad at us."

"Well, I guess we did unwittingly lose her that basketball game and, apparently, a lot of money."

Home at last, they made their way into the apartment and Cody headed for the first aid kit as Zack plopped on the couch.

"Man, that was a painful game," Cody muttered, returning with antiseptic cream and a box of Band-Aids. He took a seat next to his brother and started cleaning his left knee, "It was like everyone was out for blood."

"Tell me about it," Zack groaned, picking at a fresh scab on his elbow, "Just because you ran into Max once…" Cody blanched suddenly and Zack peered curiously at him.

"Oh man. I just realized…" Cody stammered, "I hit a girl."

Zack laughed.

"No. You hit Max," he said teasingly, then in a different tone, "Besides, that was just an accident. You weren't trying to hurt her. Those other guys are a different story…"

"Yeah. I guess you're right," Cody sighed, "It still feels kind of wrong, though."

"Not as wrong as Jason using us like that," Zack growled, "Max was right. He played us. Man, I knew I didn't like that guy."

"Yeah. Same here," Cody agreed, drawing in a quick breath as he coated his cut knees with antiseptic cream. Zack arched a brow at his brother as he stole the cream to tend to his own injuries.

"Then why'd you agree to go play hoops with him?"

"To punish you for staying out so late. Word of advice, Zack, next time you plan on lying about how late you were out don't make so much noise when you come home. I was kind of hoping you'd be hung-over," Cody replied nonchalantly, applying bandages. Zack fixed a glare on his brother.

"For your information, I did not drink last night," he stated matter-of-factly, then ducking his head, he sheepishly added, "Much…"

Cody rolled his eyes. He tossed the box of band-aids to his brother and limped to the refrigerator, procuring two cans of cola. He hobbled back to the couch and handed one to Zack, popping the other one open for himself and taking a long draught. He rested his chin in his hand, propping his elbow up on the arm of the couch, and stared off into the distance, pondering their morning events.

"Six years," Cody said distantly.

"Hm?"

"That's how long it's been since we last hung out with Max. Six years," Cody explained. He sighed, "Though it hadn't really felt like we were friends then. We were doing that school project together, remember? That was the last time we saw her, really. Afterwards, I went to the mall with Tapeworm."

"Oh yeah…I had a date that night…with a blonde eighth grader," Zack recalled, grinning goofily. Cody smacked him, more out of habit than irritation.

"I'd asked if she'd wanted to come with us, to the mall, but she turned us down."

"As usual," Zack interjected, "It's starting to come back to me. She'd been bailing on us more and more during those days. I hadn't really noticed it then…"

"But looking back on it now it seems obvious," Cody finished, "Maybe we had done something to make her mad back then and we didn't even realize it. It would make sense, what with her not wanting to chat with us at the basketball court and all. Do you think we pulled a prank on her or something when we were kids that she never forgave us for?"

"Who knows? I don't remember. Man, girls sure can hold grudges," Zack chuckled, then, "Hey, maybe if we got her money back she'd forgive us for whatever it was we did or, at least, tell us what it was so we could apologize or laugh about it or something."

"And how exactly would you propose we get her money back?" Cody demanded. A smirk played in the corner of Zack's mouth.

"We'll just talk to Jason tomorrow. I'm sure we could find a way of convincing him to return the money," he answered. Cody eyed his brother suspiciously.

"Well…I guess talking couldn't hurt. Not sure what we could say to get the money back but I would like to give him a good reprimanding. It would just be talking though, right?"

"Oh yeah, just talking."

Cody didn't feel reassured. Wistfully, he reminded his brother, "Jason's friend had that knife and he didn't look afraid to use it."

"Don't worry, Cody, we're just going to talk to him."

-0-0-

Max balanced herself on the boardwalk railing, shuddering against the night breeze. The moon was low on the harbor, just kissing the ocean, and a field of stars lit the sky. Her stomach grumbled and she placed her palm over it absently as she chewed at her bottom lip. She'd spent the day going over that basketball game in her mind. She knew she should have called it off the minute those three had done the switch, but there was something about seeing the twins again that had clouded her judgment. Maybe she'd convinced herself that since she had known the boys as kids, had been their teammate, that she would know their game.

Grimacing, Max played back that moment in her mind, the moment when she'd frozen and lost the game. Collin, in his bright yellow shirt, had been open. She could have faked left, Zack would've gone for it – he always did – and she would have made the pass, Collin would have made the basket, they would have won. She just hadn't counted on Zack having gotten so much taller, his features more defined, his voice deeper. Hadn't counted on him leaving behind the rounded baby fat of boyhood in exchange for the lanky angular form of adolescence.

Warmth flooded Max's cheeks and she buried her face in her knees. She hadn't counted on, after all these years, those eyes still being the same shade of green.

"Damnit. Idiot. Stupid, goddamn, idiot. What was I thinking?" she demanded of the empty ocean air. She wrapped her arms about her legs and a gull crying in the distance was her only answer.

* * *

A/N: Another chapter, for your enjoyment. We're having a Pie Day at work tomorrow, I'm in a good place.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

The next day at Cheever High School, as classes let out, Jason Stenor found himself thrown against a wall of lockers, his face rammed into cool blue metal and the forearm of a very peeved Zack Martin holding him securely in place, an arm twisted behind his back.

"Come on, boys, we're all friends here!" Jason pleaded. He may have towered over the other boy, but Zack was definitely the stronger and, as if to prove that point, he pressed Jason's restrained arm up and in, drawing a croak of pain.

"You said we were just going to talk," Cody whined behind his brother, arms crossed and a disapproving scowl shadowing his face. He glanced nervously over his shoulder but, fortunately for the twins – mostly Zack – the halls were empty.

"We are talking," Zack snarled, leaning heavily on Jason and growling, "All friends, huh? If I remember correctly, your _friend_, Ricky, pulled a knife on my brother and me yesterday."

"I swear, I didn't know he had that thing on him," Jason cried, "I was just as surprised as you were when he pulled it out!"

"But you knew about the bet," Cody pointed out.

"If that's what this is about, I'll get you a cut of the wins."

"We don't want a cut," Zack hissed, grinding Jason's face into the hard surface, "And you didn't win it, you used us to cheat Max."

"By the way, did you know Max was a girl?" Cody threw in.

"A girl…? What? No! No, I didn't know," Jason stammered, and to his credit, he looked genuinely confused, "Look, we didn't cheat him – _her_. She was the one that came to us and made the bet in the first place!"

"Yeah, but you're the one who switched players," Cody snapped, "Did those two friends really cancel on you?"

"And your friend shoved her to the ground and stole all her money at knife point," Zack added.

"All her money? The bitch didn't even bring enough to cover the bet," Jason spat and, as something unreadable flashed before his eyes, Zack drove a fist into the taller boy's side causing him to double over.

"Zack, don't," Cody begged, scanning the hall again. Then putting his attention back on Jason, he hastily questioned, "Why would she come to you to make a bet?"

"Because she always does," Jason replied, breathing haggardly from the pain. He struggled a bit against Zack but the boy held firm, "She's always at the courts challenging guys for money. Everyone thinks 'little runt, easy dough', I guess. But she's good. I mean, you guys played her."

"And you knew about this?" Cody asked, "About her making bets like that?"

"No, Jermaine heard…" Jason trailed off, banging his head against the locker in frustration.

"I see. Jermaine heard there was a kid at the basketball courts that played for money. So you, Ricky, and Jermaine went down there with two bozos," Cody took over, "Threw some hoops until you caught Max's attention. Made the bet. Let me guess, you said your guys were tired that day but set a game date for Sunday."

"Maybe sweetened the pot a bit to make it more appealing," Zack suggested.

"Then you called in two guys from the school basketball team," Cody gestured to himself and Zack, "Figured she wouldn't know the difference. Classic bait and switch."

"Admit it, Jason, you cheated her and used us to do it."

"Fine, we cheated her," Jason relented, "What do you want me to do about it?"

"Give her the money back," Zack said simply.

"And apologize," Cody added.

"What? No way! The bitch could have called off the bet before we even played the game," Jason argued and Zack twisted his arm again, prompting a strangled moan.

"Fine," Zack hissed, "Then Cody and I will just have to go to coach and tell him about the little street game you set up and your gambling problem."

"You wouldn't! I'd get kicked off the team. You and Cody were there too, you'd get in trouble also."

"Yeah, but I'm sure our friend Max could tell coach who exactly she placed the bet with and how they cheated and roughed her up and stole her cash," Cody shrugged.

It wasn't the truth, of course, though not quite a lie. Neither twin knew if Max would be interested in tattling on Jason, especially after the way she departed from the basketball court. But Jason didn't know that.

"Fine, fine, alright! You don't have to tell coach anything," Jason whimpered, "I have my cut…in my wallet…back pocket. Jermaine and Ricky have the rest but they don't go to school here. I can tell you where they are but if you want to try blackmailing them into giving up their split I can tell you right now it won't work."

"Ricky was the one with the knife," Cody reminded his brother. Zack frowned, easing up his grip on Jason to allow the taller boy access to his pocket. He produced a wallet and handed over a couple twenties inside. The twins glared at him, eying the money that remained.

"Hey, that's all I got from the bet. This is my money," Jason complained.

"Maybe you could get it back from your friends," Cody jeered as Zack accepted the offered bills.

"I'll risk getting kicked off the team," Jason replied evenly, tucking his wallet away again. Zack moved forward threateningly but Cody restrained him.

"This is just going to have to be enough," Cody sighed as Jason took the chance to rush off down the hall, "Wait a minute, I still want an apology."

"Let it go, Cody," Zack muttered, shoving the money in his pocket, "I still think we should go see Jermaine and Ricky."

"No way," Cody argued, "I know you. You don't plan on talking with them; you're just going to go at them all angry and fists flying."

"After the way Jermaine treated Max and Ricky pulled a knife on us," Zack shot back, "Could you blame me?"

"Right. Ricky pulled a knife on us," Cody returned, stressing the words.

"Why are you so caught up on that?"

"Why are you _not_?"

"I am…it's just…what do we do? Just let them get away with it?"

"Yes," Cody frowned at the tiled hallway, "I don't like it anymore than you but we don't have any other option. Do you really want to risk getting stabbed?"

Before his brother could answer, Cody straightened suddenly and Zack turned around curiously. A young lady dressed in a pink mini skirt was walking towards them, a bright sardonic smile on her face. Cody shook his head at his twin knowingly.

"You forgot to call her again, didn't you?"

"I'll meet you in the parking lot," Zack sighed, then forcing a smile at the approaching girl as she exchanged a stiff nod of greeting with the passing Cody, "Hi, Abby."

"Hello, Zachary."

Cody visibly winced in unknowing unison with his brother as he disappeared down the hall.

One look at Abigail Descartes and it was easy to see why she was one of the most popular girls in the school. She was beautiful with silky black curls, full pouted lips, perfect round azure eyes, and just a sprinkle of freckles across her button nose. Her body was framed like a supermodel, voluptuous curves and long legs. She exuded confidence, walking with her shoulders back, chest puffed out, and nose slightly turned upward. She was a varsity cheerleader, the student body secretary, homecoming queen, and her family owned a high-end boutique – so she was rich to boot. Boys wanted her and girls wanted to be her.

"I waited Saturday. All day, I waited. And all night."

"I know I was supposed to call," Zack started apologetically, but Abby held up a silencing hand.

"I thought to call you. I was worried, you know," she went on, and, meekly, Zack lowered his eyes to study Abby's tan Prada boots, "But I said, this time, I'll give him a chance. And when your call never came, I thought, I could call him and yell. Or I could wait; give him the opportunity to redeem himself. I thought, perhaps he'll call Sunday. So I waited."

"Abby, I'm really sorry. I am. Something came up and…"

"I don't want to hear any of your excuses. This is the third time, Zachary. I can't keep doing all the work in this relationship."

"I know, Abby, and I really am sorry."

"It's alright. I'm going to forgive you."

Zack perked at that. "Really?"

"Yes. Because you're going to make it up to me."

Crestfallen again. "I am?"

"Yes. Guys and Dolls is playing at the theatre-house on Main and Third. We're going to see it this Friday with Victoria and Blaine," Abby explained, her voice cold and exacting, "You're going to wear that blue sweater I got you for Valentine's day with your nice dress pants – you know, the pair I like – and you're going to bring me a bouquet of flowers and a box of bonbons. Got it?"

"Uh…got it."

Abby placed her hand lightly upon Zack's arm and, on tiptoe, pressed a kiss to his lips. She smiled sweetly.

"Take Cody with you to pick out the flowers. He's better at those types of things."

"Oh…okay…"

"That's my man," Abby cooed, gently brushing the tip of Zack's nose with her index finger, and he grinned in return, "I'll see you later, hot stuff."

"Yeah, later," he agreed, returning the kiss.

Feeling very much like the receiving end of a hit and run, Zack watched as Abby spun on her heel and headed down the hall towards the school gym, most likely for cheerleading practice. After a moment to regain his bearings, Zack headed for the parking lot where his brother was waiting at their car.

"Why do you bother having a girlfriend if you're not going to bother remembering you have her?" Cody questioned, arms crossed and eyes narrowed.

"Uh…duh? She's hot and she wants to make out with me all the time," Zack replied, ducking into the car passenger seat, his brother sliding next to him behind the wheel, turning the key in the ignition.

The truth was, Zack wasn't entirely sure why he held onto a relationship he struggled to maintain. He supposed after years of hitting on every girl he came across while watching his brother enter loving relationships with sweet girls that truly cared for him, Zack had finally decided he wanted what Cody had.

Part of Zack had always wanted what his brother had and reflecting on the long string of meaningless dates that surmised his love life; a better question would probably be what had held him back for so long from pursuing such a committed relationship.

Though it wasn't entirely certain to anyone, Zack included, if he really cared about Abigail. She was a great kisser and there was no better looking girl at school but that was really about how deep their relationship went.

"So how much trouble are you in?" Cody asked teasing, obviously avoiding the conversation Abby's entrance had interrupted.

"She let me off the hook."

Cody quirked a brow, skeptical. "Really? Why?"

"Because I'm so cute she can't stay mad at me," Zack scrunched his nose, "Hey...uh…completely unrelated…when would you be free to go flower shopping?"

Cody snickered, rolling his eyes and pulling the car out of the parking lot.

* * *

A/N: This chapter features the boys kind of OOC...well, mostly Zack. I know in the show, especially On Deck, he's more of a lover than a fighter, and while I don't see either of them really just standing idly by when someone is in trouble and needs help (as in the second chapter when Max got robbed...), it does step him a bit out of character for him to actively seek a fight. However, I did think that aggression fit the "bad boy" image they were really trying to push on him in the original series, and it might make the scene easier to swallow if you note that Jason is supposed to be something of a huge wuss; Jermaine and Ricky are the real thugs and he hangs out with them because he wants to be tougher, but he ain't. I really liked writing the scene though, because Cody and Zack were doing this unintentional good cop/bad cop routine that just sort of came out as I was trying to get into their heads.

Also, Abigail...not much to say about Abby, who is not to be mistaken with the Abby that Zack apparently pursued during some episode of the series. She's entirely OC; don't worry, she doesn't show up much in this story.

That's it. Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5:

The boys kept their conversation light on the car ride home but as they entered the apartment the tension that had lay between them amplified. Cody set up at the dining table to start on his homework as Zack perused the kitchen for an after-school snack. The money they'd obtained from Jason felt as though it was burning in his pocket and he subconsciously dove his hand in to fidget with the cash.

"Did you want to go to the courts? To see if Max is there?" Zack questioned, though it sounded more as though he were merely thinking aloud rather than asking his brother.

Cody looked thoughtful a moment, "Did you?"

They eyed one another, surveying and measuring. Sometimes Zack got the feeling his brother understood him better than he understood himself and it was often unnerving. There was shuffling in the back of the flat and the boys startled. Their mother's door, down the hall, opened and the soft pad of footsteps preempted her entry into the living room.

Carey Martin had plumped a little while the boys were away at sea but she held the weight well. She wore her hair; blonde like her sons, cropped short and at the moment it was a prime example of 'bed head'. She was dressed in a nightgown, bathrobe, and slippers and she was rubbing groggily at her face.

"Hey boys," she greeted mid-yawn.

"Sorry, mom, did we wake you? We didn't know you were home," Cody replied, ever the good-son. Carey smiled drowsily at him as she trudged into the kitchen lightly touching Zack's shoulder as she passed him for the coffeemaker.

"No, sweetie, it's fine. I actually slept in…wanted to wake up an hour ago. Finally got a night off and wanted to see how my boys were doing," she murmured as she pressed a filter into the maker and plopped a few spoonfuls of coffee granules inside. Hitting the brew button, she leaned against the counter and grinned warmly at her sons, "How was school?"

"Fine," the two responded as one.

They glanced to each other hoping their mother wouldn't catch the forced cheer in their tones and Carey, either too tired to care or too tired to notice, didn't comment, merely stating, "That's good. Get your homework done before you do anything else, alright?"

"Sure thing, mom," the boys agreed, smiling winningly. Carey headed back for her room. Cody returned his attention to his homework and Zack grabbed a can of soda from the fridge, popping it open.

"I take it you've finally decided to forget about those other two jerks," Cody quietly questioned. Zack sipped at his cola, his shoulders tense and eyes focused on the wall.

"Yeah," he muttered, "Much as I hate to admit it, you're right. And I guess Max probably wouldn't want me to get stabbed either."

"I'm not so sure about that," Cody joked, then, "When we finish our homework let's head to the basketball courts and look for her. I hope she'll be happier to see us."

"Can't see why she wouldn't be. I'm always happy to see someone with money for me," Zack pointed out.

It took the boys a couple hours to finish their homework. Cody finished earlier than Zack and took the time to check his e-mail and write a response to one Bailey had sent that morning. Then, with a promise to their mother of returning in time for dinner, the boys took off for the basketball courts.

Autumn was coming to a close and winter was quickly approaching so the days were getting shorter. Only six o'clock, the sun was already beginning to set and the air was crisp and chilly. Streetlights dimly lit the park but in a few hours it would hardly be enough to play a game.

Despite this, the area was still crowded, a heated game taking place on one of the courts between a large mass of boys, none of whom the twins recognized. Farther down, a small group of older men in their mid to late twenties were playing a half-court game and on the other half some little girls were jumping rope. Small groups of teenagers lined the bleachers and that was where the twins scanned for Max.

Cody spotted her first, tapping his brother's arm and pointing at the two teenagers at the far end of an empty court. Max was dressed in the same clothes she'd worn the day before, hair tucked up in the red beanie once more. As the boys drew closer they noticed the cut on her lip had swollen and that there were clear bruise marks and scars on her arms and around her neck where Jermaine had grabbed hold of her and shoved her into the gravel. She seemed to be arguing with her companion, the blue haired boy from the game.

"…we won. We didn't, so the deals off," the twins heard Max snarl. Blue hair noticed the approaching boys and scowled.

"I kept up my end of the bargain. Losing was your fault," he growled, as Max turned to search out what he was looking at. Cody waved slightly and Zack forced a smile to his face.

"What the hell do you two want?" Max demanded, and the nervous joviality between the twins dissipated.

"Uh…this guy bothering you?" Zack was first to speak, nodding at blue-hair.

"I can handle it," Max hissed, then to blue hair, "That was one basket. What's your excuse for the forty-eight other points you boys let them score? The loss ain't my fault so don't even try pinning it on me, Drake."

"I need that cash," Drake roared, grabbing Max's forearm and dragging her forward to whisper harshly in her face, "I've been dry two days."

Zack moved without warning, grabbing the front of Drake's shirt in a fist and shoving him back, effectively breaking the blue-haired boy's hold on Max. She stumbled with the momentum and braced her hands on Zack's back to regain balance only to pull away as though burned when she registered exactly whom she was leaning against. Her cheeks were flushed red. Cody stepped beside his brother, both boys positioned protectively in front of Max.

"Back off, buddy," Zack said menacingly.

"Who are these guys? You're knights in shining armor?" Drake asked of Max. She glared at the twins.

"I told you I was handling this," she whispered angrily to them.

"Sorry, Max, but you didn't seem to be handling it all that well and we couldn't exactly sit back and do nothing," Cody replied with a shrug. Drake quirked a brow at that.

"Old friends of yours?"

"As a matter of fact…" Zack started but Max cut in, shaking her head enthusiastically and looking truly embarrassed by the entire situation.

"No. No way. I swear, I never seen them before yesterday. They're just idiots on a Good Samaritan kick."

"Right," Drake muttered, unconvinced, "We'll talk later, then, when your new boyfriends aren't around."

"Just you try it," Zack shouted, as Drake turned and marched away. He kept a glare fixed on blue-hair's retreating back. Cody spun to face Max questioningly.

"Why is everyone always trying to get money out of you?"

"Why are you here?" Max shot back, the fire in her tone enough to silence both boys, "You guys fuck everything up! First a game that should have been cake and now this? I had things under control. Now he and everyone at this park will think I can't take care of myself."

"You're…welcome?" Cody stammered. Max shook her head, and then sighing in exasperation, turned to leave.

"We came to give you this," Zack spoke up, pulling the money from his pocket and holding it out in a tight fist, an uncertain offering. Max eyed the cash suspiciously.

"What is that?"

"It's Jason's share of the money him and his friends stole from you yesterday," Cody explained, folding his arms over his chest, both boys peering at their former friend in confused anger.

"How did…?"

"Blackmail," Zack shrugged, "We would've gotten it all back but, short of beating them to a pulp, we had no way of getting Jermaine and Ricky to cough up their cut."

"Not that we wouldn't have beaten them to a pulp if we could've," Cody added.

Max stared blankly at the boys; mouth slightly agape, and at an obvious loss for words. Zack pushed the money towards her and she hesitantly took it from his hand, which he promptly shoved in his pocket. Both boys watched her patiently as she studied the bills. She lowered her eyes and her tongue darted out to quickly wet her chapped lips.

"Um…thanks," she mumbled, folding her fingers over the twenties. She started away again, throwing over her shoulder a distant, "Bye, guys."

"Wait a minute," Zack called, "That's it? Just a thanks and a bye?"

Max paused, shaking her head in frustration. She snarled nastily, "Well what did you want?"

"Nothing, exactly," Cody attempted, "It's just that…we were hoping…"

"For what?" Max demanded, "A song and dance maybe? Thanks guys. Really. Thank you. I really appreciate you going out of your way to get this money back for me. I do. I don't know what you wanted but that's all I got."

She began away again but stopped dead in her tracks when Zack asked, "Why do you hate us? What did we do to you that was so horrible that you can't even stand to talk to us for five seconds?"

"At least give us a chance to apologize," Cody pleaded, "For whatever it was we did. Because we are sorry, if it hurt you so much."

Max's heart thudded heavily in her chest. Why couldn't they have changed more in the years? She squeezed her eyes shut, nibbling the cut on her lip until the metallic taste of blood spilled into her mouth. She ran her hand over her eyes and took a deep breath.

"Why is it…that after six years…you suddenly care so much; when you didn't give a damn then?" she whispered. Neither boy knew what she meant or how to answer her. Shuddering, Max turned and stared them both down. She held the money out, "Here. I don't want this."

"That's your money, though," Cody stated dumbfounded.

"No it isn't. You guys got this back for a little girl you knew several years ago, not me. I don't want it; so take it back."

"That's not true," Cody argued, "It was wrongfully taken from you and…"

"And I don't need a hero…heroes," Max spat.

The twins didn't budge, meeting their former friend glare for glare. So Max narrowed her eyes and, sniffling loudly, stepped forward until she stood toe to toe with a bewildered Cody. He flushed when she shoved the money into his pocket and then she spun on her heel, marching away. The boys momentarily watched her departure in stun.

As Max turned the corner she bolted, sprinting down the street and out of sight.

* * *

A/N: I like that I've been getting reviews for this story. It makes me rejoice inside! I just really love to hear what you guys think, not to mention, it's kind of nice to know that people are actually reading and not just skimming through thinking "gosh, that was a wasted five minutes of my life..."

Anyways, we got a glimpse of Carey here. I love the actress that plays Carey. She guested on the show Supernatural once and I just about had a field day, I was so excited. She plays the doting mother very well, which may be due to the fact that she is something of a doting mother type. I'm glad I got to use the character in the story too, expect more of her in chapters to follow. I was kind of dissapointed, and now you can be too, that I didn't get to use London and Moseby; because I love those two. No joke, Phil Lewis and Brenda Song are awesome, they are comedic gold. I cannot stop laughing when they're onscreen and some of the most touching moments in the series are with those two. But I didn't get to bring them into this story...so sad...maybe some other fic.

Okie...well, half a bottle of wine down, another half to go. I'm slightly drunk as I write this which may explain any nonsense or unnecessary gushing of emotion. If you are wondering, yes, I am of legal drinking age.

Hope you liked the chappie!


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6:

Cody watched as Zack kicked the apartment door open and stormed in. He quietly shut the door behind them. They'd both remained silent the walk home, stewing in their own thoughts but now the anger that had been brewing in Zack exploded.

"I just don't get it," Zack yelled, right as their mother entered the living room with a quizzical expression across her face "What the hell does she want from us?"

"Whoa, Zack, language," she scolded and said twin threw his hands up in exasperation, groaning at the ceiling.

"Why are women so complicated?" he demanded. Carey looked questioningly to Cody who rolled his eyes.

"Zack, sweetie, did you and Abigail get into a fight?" she ventured.

"…who?" Zack asked, then eyes widening slightly, "What? No."

"He's talking about Max," Cody interrupted, then sighing he went on to explain, "We ran into Max yesterday at the basketball courts. A classmate of ours tricked her out of some money, we thought we would help by getting it back but…"

"Apparently she didn't want our help," Zack growled, "I don't understand it. What did she mean by we didn't get the money back for her? Who else would we have gotten it back for?"

"Max," Carey repeated, furrowing her brow, "You mean, little Max…tomboy, pigtails, feisty attitude, great hook shot?"

"Yeah, except not so little anymore and minus the pigtails," Cody confirmed.

Zack cut in with, "And the attitude is a little less feisty and a tad more bitc-"

"_Language_," Carey interjected warningly. She crossed the room, motioning for her sons to sit.

The twins plopped on the couch, Cody leaning back with his arms folded over his stomach, Zack sitting up with his forehead cradled in the palm of his hands. Their mother took a seat in front of them on the coffee table.

"It's been awhile since you two have seen Max, hasn't it," she started, "Even before you left for Seven Seas High, you three hadn't been hanging out very much."

"It wasn't our fault," Cody muttered, "She was the one that started bailing on us."

Carey nodded, "I see. I remember you and Max were pretty close as kids, Zack. For a while, you did almost everything together."

Cody glanced to his brother, who snorted lightly but didn't bother looking up. Cody had known running into Max had shaken Zack up more, though he hadn't wanted to comment knowing it would just lead to a fight. Max had been the first girl that Zack hadn't started out by hitting on. And, unlike every other girl Zack had known, their relationship had been founded on respect and mutual interests rather than raging hormones and skin-deep attraction. Though Zack had never initially considered Max as a potential love interest, she had ironically given him his first romantic kiss. She was probably the best relationship Zack had ever had with a girl.

Six years ago, when Max had drawn away from the boys, Zack had noticed her distance but he'd just been "too cool" to care. He'd told himself, she wasn't some "hot thang" he could hook up with, she was just Max. He had said she was getting lame to hang out with anyway, becoming an embarrassment. Rumors had been circulating that she was his girlfriend and it had made it harder for him to flirt with other girls at school. At the time, he had told himself it didn't matter if she was around or not.

Now, Zack wasn't sure how to feel. Part of him still wanted to pretend like it was no big deal, but another part of him, the part that was really confusing him, kept focusing his attention back to the old days, back to the good times, when they were friends and everything was ice cream and basketball games, spitballs and good-natured pranks. And it was that part of him that kept saying, sure, she'd been the one to leave but he was the one that let her.

"Things change," Zack finally said, "Like Cody said, she started bailing on us but she's acting as though we were the ones that ditched her."

"She didn't want her money back," Cody spoke up, "She said we only got it because of who she had been and not who she is now."

"Whatever that's supposed to mean," Zack muttered.

Cody dug the money out of his pocket, placing it on the coffee table beside his mother. She sighed; looking between her boys with a mixture of sorrow for the pain they were feeling and pride for their chivalrous act. Sometimes, though it was very rare, they did good deeds as though to remind her she hadn't screwed up entirely on raising them.

"I don't know what to tell you boys," Carey started with a sad reassuring smile, "Did you do something to her six years ago that she hasn't forgiven you for? Maybe pull a not-so-funny prank?"

"That's what we were wondering," Cody exclaimed, "But we can't remember…"

"Well, it sounds to me like maybe there's more going on with Max," Carey said, "It could be that her attitude might not have anything to do with the both of you at all."

"How does that make sense?" Zack demanded, bolting upright, "We tried to do something nice for her and she treated us like jerks."

"I realize that, Zack," Carey retorted, "But you have to remember, it has been six years. You don't know what's happened in that time. I'm sure she's changed a great deal since last you saw her just as the both of you have changed over these past years. She's grown up, had different experiences, and faced different problems."

"It doesn't excuse her treating us like jerks," Cody muttered, Zack nodding.

"No," their mother agreed, "But I hope it gives you a better perspective of things. The way she acted most likely has nothing whatsoever to do with you boys and everything to do with things in her own life. A life that, as hard as it might be to acknowledge, neither of you are a part of anymore."

The boys shifted, grumbling responses though generally accepting their mother's assessment of the situation. Smiling, Carey stood up, picking the money up off the coffee table and holding it out to her sons.

"Why don't you try returning this again in a few days?" she suggested, "Give all of you a chance to clear your heads, sort out your emotions."

"All right, mom," the twins replied with varying levels of enthusiasm. Cody returned the money to his pocket.

"Okay," Carey grinned, clapping her hands together, "Why don't you boys get cleaned up and we'll go out to a nice restaurant?" The boys piped agreement and she disappeared to her room as they moved towards their own.

"Hey, Cody," Zack stopped his brother outside their doors, "Do you think mom's right? That Max wasn't really mad at us, she's just dealing with other things?"

Cody pondered a moment, "Think about it, Zack. Jason said that Max spends a lot of time playing games for money at the basketball courts. And you saw that Drake guy harassing her today. We _know_ that mom is right."

"Man," Zack sighed, shaking his head, "What is going on with her? The old Max never would have made such stupid choices."

"Yeah," Cody agreed, and then shrugged, "There's nothing we can do about it though. Max made it pretty clear, she doesn't want our help."

Without another word, they parted ways to get ready for dinner.

-0-0-

That night was colder than it had been all year, winter poking its head around the corner. Many vagrants had set up for the season at Saigon Alley, a popular squat in the abandoned building behind the theater house on Main and Third. Several tents were pitched and a few heavy iron garbage barrels had been pulled into the center of the small community, the waste inside ablaze. Rag-clad figures of all ages and gender stood around the fires attempting to get warm.

An impish looking boy in a yellow shirt.

A strung out teenager with blue-tinged hair.

And a girl with her hair tucked up in a red beanie to disguise her gender, whose grumbling stomach was making her wish she hadn't let pride cost her forty dollars.

* * *

A/N: Another chapter up for public consumption. You got more Carey and a little more insight into what Max is up to. Originally, Zack's outburst as Carey walked into the room contained a more vulgar expletive, but as I thought about it, I couldn't hear him saying a word like that (and even bitch was awkward for me to write coming out of his mouth), so if Carey's reaction to his saying "hell" seems a bit over the top, that's why. Some of these scenes in general have been difficult to write, I just try to focus on the character and not the actor playing him...though I'm sure the Sprouse twin probably curse (like normal teens) I just can't picture it.

Anyhow, let me know what you think. I love all the reviews you guys are writing and I'm so thankful to each of you for taking the time to write them! Your interest seems piqued and I hope the chapters that follow keep you wanting more.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7:

The next few days the twins did their best to put behind them their encounter with Max.

For Cody it was a simple matter. He neatly filed away the forty-dollars in a white envelope marked with her name then focused his energy on missing Bailey. It wasn't as though he didn't feel badly about the incident, in fact it stung quite a bit whenever he did let it enter his thoughts, but he was a rational-minded individual. He came to terms rather quickly with the knowledge that Max – despite whatever trouble she was in – did not want nor need his assistance and realized dwelling on it was futile and a bit depressing.

Zack, however, found forgetting to be easier said than done. He tried to put the girl from his past to the peripheral, he tried really hard. But it was as though every little thing reminded him of her scathing words and disregard of the twins altruism and suddenly his kindling anger was lit anew. It certainly didn't help that he wasn't a rationally minded individual. While he understood that Max was not his concern and that he played no role in her life, he couldn't accept it. He hated being told what to do – like mind his own business – and more to the point, he hated feeling helpless; as though something were outside his power.

So he went back to the basketball courts every day after school, sat in the bleachers watching the few street games being played, and scoured the gruff faces for a familiar stranger; not entirely certain what he would say or do should he see her.

It was a wasted effort; Max never showed again.

The week trudged on. Neither boy brought up the incident. They kept their conversations light, pleasant, and focused on topics that had been important to them before that Sunday morning basketball game.

While Zack seemed unperturbed in the way they tiptoed round the subject, Cody found it unnerving. Admittedly, the twins had been closer in their youth, growing distant in their teenaged years; but the gap had never felt so wide before. Or maybe, they had just never realized how large it had gotten. Cody couldn't help wondering, if they were closing themselves off about this, what else were the boys holding back from one another?

He nursed the worry Thursday morning in his room as Bailey regaled him with the latest escapades of her and, her roommate, London, the Tipton heiress. The S.S. Tipton, having deported from Madagascar, was working its way up along the African coast and currently took harbor in an Egyptian port. The girls had taken a private Tipton charter plane to Giza and toured the pyramids the day before.

"...when I told London that the petrified scarab wasn't actually a gemstone replica but a long dead insect, she freaked out," Bailey laughed, grinning from ear to ear. She sighed suddenly and lamented, "I wish you had been there, Cody, no one else appreciated the beauty in Ancient Egyptian society's consideration of dung beetles rolling excrement into a ball an allusion to the sun rolling across the sky."

"Yeah," Cody replied distantly, earning a frown from his girlfriend. All his responses had been unusually monosyllabic that morning.

"Wow. I'm glad to see you miss me too," she muttered peevishly. Cody startled at that, coming to attention and quirking his head.

"Huh? What are you talking about? Of course I miss you, Bailey."

"It's kind of hard to tell. I mean, between the ship setting sail and school and your clubs and sports, we haven't been able to talk for days – not even a phone call. Now we've got a Skype connection open and you barely seem interested," Bailey complained. She pouted, "I know you said you wanted me to talk about everything happening onboard but are you sure you aren't starting to feel a bit...I don't know...jealous?"

"What? Jealous? Bailey, no," Cody protested, "How could I be jealous?"

"Well...I did just tour the Great Pyramid and I got an autograph from Dr. Zahi Hawass."

"Okay, maybe I'm a little jealous," Cody relented, "But, I promise, it isn't effecting my feelings for you. Honestly, Bailey, I'd give up ever again seeing any one of the Seven Wonders of the World to have you here, right now, for even just one minute."

"Aww...Cody," Bailey smiled brightly, "But you love Machu Picchu."

"I love you more, Bailey," Cody insisted.

"Aw...I love you too." she sighed, then questioned quietly, concern edging her tone, "But really, Cody? What's bothering you?"

Cody leaned back in his seat and rubbed his hands wearily over his face. He wasn't yet certain he wanted to talk about it, after all, his emotions were still so jumbled. He wouldn't even know where to begin to broach the topic of what exactly was bothering him.

But Bailey saved him the trouble of finding the right words, gingerly questioning, "Are you and Zack fighting?"

And as though that were the storm that finally broke the levee, Cody slumped forward, his shoulders sagging and head lolled. He should have known Bailey would figure out Zack were somehow involved. She knew better than anyone that nothing weighed heavier on her boyfriend's mind than he and his twin not getting along.

"Not...exactly...fighting," Cody admitted, "I don't know, Bailey. Something happened – we just ran into someone we used to know, things weren't the same – and its bothering Zack but he won't talk to me about it."

"And that's bothering you," Bailey surmised.

Cody nodded slowly. "When we were kids, Zack and I were best friends. We did _everything_ together."

"And told each other everything?"

"Yeah. Not that there was much to tell when we were ten besides 'I broke Moseby's favorite vase' or 'I've got a mummy hidden in my room'."

Bailey hid a smile behind her hand. Her boyfriend and his twin's antics were so adorable.

"I knew we were growing apart but for some reason it didn't matter on the boat. Now that we're back in Boston, surrounded by our old haunts and old..." he treaded carefully with the next word, "...friends...I don't know, it hurts."

Bailey gave Cody a sympathetic look and gently said, "I wish I were there. I would give you the biggest snuggle hug right now."

Cody smiled half-hearted. He told her candidly, "I could really use it."

They held one another's gaze for a few tender heartbeats, then moved on to cheerier conversation.

By the time Cody exited his room Zack was up groggily perusing the kitchen cupboards for grub. While Cody was cleaned, dressed, and pristine for the day of school, his twin was still wearing pajamas – a rumpled t-shirt and sweats – with mussed hair.

"Morning, Zack."

"Mrgh...uimph"

"I see you were up late playing video games again," Cody playfully noted, maneuvering past the other boy to grab a banana off the counter.

"Mmm...yea..."

With a bowl of dry Cap't Crunch in hand, Zack shuffled into the living area and plopped onto the couch. He ran a hand over the cushions until he found the remote and then switched the television on and shoveled some cereal into his mouth. Cody took a bite of his banana and joined his brother.

"So where did you want to go after school?" Cody asked and Zack glanced oddly at him.

"I didn't know we had plans. I was actually thinking about shooting some hoops at the courts again," he sheepishly admitted. Cody rolled his eyes and swatted a hand his brother's direction.

"I was talking about flower shops," he hissed in mock frustration, "Tomorrow is your make-up date with Abigail, remember? You're supposed to get her a bouquet and chocolates."

Zack's eyes widened, "Oh man, I forgot."

"Well that's obvious."

"Damn it, I got to find that stupid blue sweater and what the hell is 'Guides and Dogs' anyway, some veterinarian monologue?"

"_Guys and Dolls_, It's a highly acclaimed Broadway musical production."

"Great. I got to put up with watching that _and_ hanging out with Abby's snooty friends? Man, what am I going to do?" Zack moaned, bolting from the couch and tossing the half-eaten bowl of cereal on the kitchen counter.

Taking another bite from his banana, Cody watched his brother stalking across the room. Zack's irritability level was through the roof; it wasn't normal. The older twin had always been the more laid back of the two, shrugging off forgotten responsibilities like a snake shrugs away its skin.

"You could always break up with her," Cody said, offhandedly.

Zack brightened suddenly and Cody wondered with a jolt if the other boy had taken his suggestion seriously.

"Hey, Cody? Pretend to be me tomorrow night."

Cody glared.

"I'll give you money. My baseball card collection? I'll do your chores for a week!"

"You don't even do your own chores," Cody pointed out, finishing with his banana and walking into the kitchen to throw away its peel. He shook his head and reprimanded the other boy, "Besides, don't you think she'll notice that I'm not you?"

"Please, she can't tell us apart."

Cody rolled his eyes once more. He'd been on the receiving end of enough "you're-a-terrible-boyfriend" rants from the popular girl to know it was true.

"Fine, then don't you think it's morally degenerative to bail out on your _make-up_ date? I mean, it is supposed to be your punishment for screwing up...again."

Zack made a face and shrugged, "I don't know about it being morally de...whatever you said, but it's probably a bad thing to do." He was thoughtful a moment and lamented, "You know, it'll be dark in the theater, won't it? So the make-_up_ will probably turn into make-_out_. I take it back, I don't need you to swap places with me."

"Good. 'Cause I wasn't going to do it anyway."

"Will you do me another favor though?"

"I wasn't going to do you the first favor."

"I'll give you the money and you go buy the flowers and chocolates after school?"

Cody scowled at his brother, folding his arms over his chest. Zack offered up his best puppy-dog-pout face.

"Come on, Codes, you're way better at picking out that type of thing than me," he pleaded, "Abby'll hate anything I get for her anyway, and love whatever you buy."

Cody examined Zack. He could tell his brother was trying desperately to get out of the booked evenings but he couldn't figure why. Was it really so important to Zack to go to the basketball courts, he wondered.

"Fine," Cody groaned, "Give me the money. I'll go buy your girlfriend flowers."

"Thanks, Codes, you're the best."

Zack slapped an arm over Cody's shoulders affectionately and Cody let a small smile warm his features. He figured, even if Zack wouldn't talk to him, he could still find other ways to support his brother.

* * *

A/N: Yup...so no Max in this chapter, but there is a light-hearted conversation between Bailey and Cody. For those of you wondering (all...none of you?) Dr. Zahi Hawass is the curator of the Great Pyramid - he is in charge of it, so to speak - and I would give my left big toe to intern for him. Machu Picchu, if you didn't infer from the dialogue, is one of the Seventh Wonders of the World. Its an Ancient Incan site. Hope you liked the chapter.

I promise, there will be lots more Max to come.

Thank you so much, as usual, for the reviews. I'm dead tired, I think I'll go pass out.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8:

The theater-house on Main and Third was a rundown relic from the 1940s; fashioned from redbrick. It had recently been renovated with a new lighted sign, freshly upholstered stadium style seats, and state-of-the-art stage-light systems. Added to the big name productions housed there, the place drew in a ritzy crowd.

Despite the theater being a popular night out for the socially elite, however, the area was still one of the worst in Boston. Which Zack bore in mind, keeping his hand protectively in the small of Abigail's back as she chatted excitedly with prim and blonde Victoria and sweater-set adorned Blain. His eyes roved their surroundings anxiously.

Aside from the high-class crowd gathered outside the theater-house awaiting admission, there were small packs of grungy and thuggish looking groups gathered on opposite corners and ducked into alleyways.

Across the street there appeared to be some hoodlum running an illegal gambling station on top of an overturned wooden crate, and a handful of the theater patrons had gathered round interestedly. They would get rowdy with every win or loss.

Farther down Third there appeared to be a few girls soliciting themselves. Fancy cars would stop at the red streetlight and a skimpily dressed lady would sway over, lean into the open window so that her ample bosom spilled into the vehicle and converse with the driver.

Underneath a streetlamp on a corner a couple blocks down Main there was a gathering of four or five young men dressed in oversized jeans and colorful decaled t-shirts. Zack could've sworn one of the boys looked familiar, clad in a yellow shirt. It was hard to be certain at such a distance.

"I love that sweater, Zachary," Blain said, shaking Zack from his wanderings. The preppy boy was feeling the fabric of Zack's garment between his fingertips and thumb. Zack forced a smile and pulled away as politely as he could manage.

"Uh...yeah...thanks."

"It's cashmere," Abigail commented, placing a delicate palm across Zack's chest, "Imported from Paris. Doesn't it look fabulous on my little sweetpea?" She brushed a kiss to Zack's cheek and he flustered.

"It brings out his eyes," Victoria agreed, she reached out a hand to touch Abigail's shoulder, gushing, "He's so adorable, Abby. _And_ he has a twin? Double the eye-candy, how lucky are you? Thinking about it...I could just die!"

"You and me both," Zack muttered inaudibly under his breath.

"Oh, but my sweetpea is so much hotter than his brother," Abigail assured her friend, sliding her arms possessively around Zack's waist and drawing a blush to his cheeks. He grinned somewhat stupidly.

The doors to the theater-house opened and the four teens were dragged inward by the crowd's current. Zack and Blain payed for the tickets and they found their seats inside the theater. It took several tens of minutes of people shifting around and settling in, before the lights dimmed and the curtains rose.

Zack was uncomfortable and stuffy. The chair was rigid and the seats were too close together giving him a claustrophobic feel. Someone nearby was wearing far too much perfume, it clogged his senses. He hated the blue sweater, it made him itch. Abigail, watching the stage with misty eyes, clutched tightly to his hand, which only added to his discomfort as his palms were starting to sweat. By the middle of the second song he was ready to claw up the walls.

To make matters worse, it didn't look as though Abigail – too fixated on the performing actors – would be making out with him anytime soon.

When the third song started, he excused himself to the bathroom and all but ran for the theater-house exit and sweet, sweet freedom. Outside, Zack leaned against the building's cool brick wall and gasped in the brisk city air. He ran a hand through his hair and recalled his mother exclaiming before he left the apartment, _a musical, how fun!_

Fun. Yeah, right. Compared to that theater-house, Chinese water torture was a soothing deep tissue massage.

Zack sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew he would have to go back in sometime soon or Abigail would get even angrier with him. And who knew what the next punishment would be. Opera, maybe. He shuddered, straightening and starting back for the entrance.

"...back my money, you conniving little cheater!"

Zack froze; commotion across the street catching his eye.

Patrons now packed like sardines inside the theater-house, the surrounding area was mostly empty. There were three very large men left standing at the gambling station, one of which looked very pissed. He was shouting accusations and grabbed the collar of the very young-looking boy running the game, dragging him forward so that their faces were close.

"You're a thieving little punk! I want my money back!"

Zack shook his head and started back into the theater. Again, he stopped dead, head whipping back round to gape at that very familiar red beanie. Without pausing to think about how potentially bad an idea it was to cross the street and confront three grown men with no obvious qualms about beating an adolescent to a pulp, he was bounding across the street primed for a fight.

"You heard him, cheat, cough up our cash or you'll be coughing up blood," one of the other men growled.

"No way," was the gruff protest, "Don't you know how Three Card Monty works, dumbass? Find the queen or find yourself S.O.L!"

The man at the forefront sank his fist into soft flesh and the youth doubled over.

"Hey! Let her go," Zack barked.

The man spun round in time to catch a jab from the furious newcomer, letting loose his main target in the process. She slid to her knees, still clutching the injured gut. Shimmering doe eyes glared up in the night.

"Zack...?"

The first man rubbed at his injured jaw, and the other two reeled on the would-be-savior. Zack swallowed hard, stepping back a bit, but one glance to fallen Max reignited his anger and he tensed, balling his hands tight.

"Leave her alone," he told them tersely.

"Who the fuck are you?" one of the men demanded, then humorously, "The thief has a friend?"

"Friend or not, does it really matter who I am?" Zack retorted, a tiny voice in the back of his mind chanting; _bad idea, run, bad idea, run_, "Maybe I just didn't like the looks of three giant assholes against one little kid!"

"So you thought you'd even the odds," the first man jeered, advancing forward.

"...uh..."

Zack started a few steps backwards when suddenly the crate crashed heavily down on the first man's head. He faltered, grunting with frustration, and the other men moved. Zack swung at his attacker, connecting a solid hit, but caught a fist, and stumbled from the impact, then felt himself thrown to the ground.

From the corner of a bleary eye he saw Max on her feet pressed against a wall, a snarl on her lip. The third man had turned to attack her but was now making an odd face, hands cupping his groin. Zack raised his arm just in time to block a heavy object collapsing down on his head, feeling his flesh split when it hit.

There was a loud THUNK, then a soft, insistent hand tugged at his arm, dragging him partway to his feet.

"Run, idiot!" came a soft hiss in his ear.

Then he was bolting through the night. His head was light, his vision fuzzy, but he forced himself to focus on following that redcap as they weaved into alleyways, clambered over chain-link fences, and raced through foreign streets.

When Max finally slowed, gasping for breath and clutching her sides, Zack sank to the ground, black explosions erupting across his eyes. A warm touch to his shoulder and he looked up to meet Max's soft, concerned gaze. She chewed at the nearly healed cut on her lower lip and swept an examining eye over the collapsed boy.

"You're an idiot."

"You really need to work on showing your appreciation, you know that?"

"What the hell were you thinking, Zack?"

"Uh...that you were being attacked and needed help?"

Max stood, shaking her head and tearing the beanie off to let her hair flutter round her face.

"Come on, Max? What was I supposed to do?" Zack demanded haughtily, "Just walk away and let you get your ass kicked."

"I could handle it."

"Right. Same way you could handle blue-hair? Same way you handled those guys at the ball court? I've seen the way you handle things, so excuse me for being worried," Zack growled. He attempted to pull himself off the ground but a fire white hot licked up his arm and he hissed, wincing and cradling the injured appendage.

Max knelt down, her hand on his shoulder again.

"You're bleeding," she noted, "Let me see."

He held out his arm, the sweater soaked through – Abby was not going to be pleased – and Max gently peeled the sleeve away. She furrowed her brow, drew in her breath sharply.

"You're an idiot," she said again, but her tone was lighter now.

"We've established that," Zack smirked, then grimaced through the pain.

* * *

A/N: I told you Max would be back.

So here's the thing, I know I've kind of been a bit fussy about reviews, and every author on the site generally is, but that's because we aren't posting these stories for our own amusement, we're posting them for you people and the least you can do is show a little appreciation by taking a microt of the time it has taken us to write a chapter and let us know what you think. I realize this isn't the best fanfiction ever written, because it's so far from even being the best fanfiction I've ever written, but it's still nice to know that someone somewhere wants more of it after each update. And that's really all a review does, let's me know that I'm not posting chapters for no reason. Truth be told, I have this entiire story written. It is 24 chapters long, all spellchecked and proofread and waiting to post. Now, I can post a chapter every day, I can post every few days, or I can never post again; but it's really up to all of you. I know that sounds like an ultimatum, but it isn't. The reality is, when I post a chapter, and no one reviews, my first thought is "well, no one wants to read, so why should I post more". I have the story, I know what I think of it, and I can read it any time I want. I don't need to post it.

Anyway, moral of the story: If you want to read this whole story, YOU HAVE TO REVIEW! It doesn't even have to be long, you can say "please update, I wanna know what happens next". And that's it. Thank you for your time. Hope you liked this. Please, let me know what you think.


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: Thank you so much for all the reviews! I'm glad people do want to see more of this. I am sorry about the rant, its just frustrating waiting for someone to show they care for updates, and really that's all I need is just *someone* to demonstrate they want more. Thank you (all five of you - that's a lot for this story!) for being that someone. :)

* * *

Chapter 9:

The door swung open to an empty apartment and Zack – arm wrapped in his sweater – and Max shuffled quietly inside. Zack headed into the kitchen for the first aid kit, mildly amused that this was twice he needed it in the week since reuniting with his childhood friend. Max stood awkwardly by the door, arms folded almost protectively around herself.

"You can sit down," Zack called, procuring a roll of bandages, some gauze, and the antiseptic cream from the kit.

"Oh...uh...yeah. Okay," Max stammered, she eased her way into the living room and stared oddly at the couch but didn't take a seat. Zack, however, plopped down casually and began unfurling the bloody sweater.

"Looks like mom and Cody went out for dinner," he remarked, "Which is good because the last thing I need is those two hens over me clucking that I need to go to the doctor or something."

"Yeah, because being cared about is tragic," Max muttered.

"What...?" Zack glanced up and Max shrugged, shaking her head.

"Nothing."

She started to slowly wander round the apartment, examining photographs on the walls, the television, the table, the kitchen; as Zack focused on cleaning his cut. It was a bad gash, but it didn't – at least he hoped it didn't – look as though it needed stitches.

Every now and then, Zack peered at Max curiously. She was still wearing the same clothes from Sunday, her tattered pack tight on her shoulders, and it looked as though she might not have showered in a few days. It wasn't like the Max he used to know. He noticed her looking at the bananas on the kitchen counter, placing a hand over her stomach, and suddenly – shockingly – realized she was really slender. Max had always been petite but there was something in the gaunt of her cheeks and the boniness of her arms and legs that struck him as...eerily unnatural.

He attempted casually asking, "You hungry?" but winced at the hitch in his own words.

Max darted a suspicious leer his direction. "No. Are _you_?"

"Maybe. I haven't eaten," he murmured, pouring all his focus on the injured arm, "I was supposed to go out for dinner after..." he trailed off and his eyes widened, "Ah...shit."

"What?"

"Oh...uh...nothing. I was out with...friends...and...it's nothing."

He took off from the theater-house without saying anything, he silently berated himself, Abigail was not going to be pissed. Suddenly, Max sat in front of Zack on the coffee table, taking the bandages from his hand and motioning for his arm. As she began wrapping the injury, her gentle fingers brushing droplets of warmth across his skin, thoughts of his girlfriend faded from his mind.

"How are you doing?" Zack questioned and Max quirked a brow at him. He nervously explained, "You took a good hit to the gut back there."

"Oh, yeah. It'll leave a nice bruise," she admitted, then poking a finger at Zack's cheek where a hit had landed on him, said with a grin, "Kind of like that one there."

He winced, pulling his face away, whining, "Ow...don't..." but smirked all the same.

"There. Finished," Max exclaimed and Zack hesitantly took his arm back from her grasp examining her handiwork. The bandages were neat, expertly tied.

"You've done this before."

She shrugged, nonchalant, "Boys are rough. I hang out with a lot of them."

"Some things never change," Zack chuckled.

Max folded her hands in her lap and lowered her eyes, a pretty blush coloring her cheeks. It was this side of her, vulnerable and uncertain, that made Zack's hand itch to reach forward and brush the loose strands of hair from her face.

"You sure you don't want something to eat?" he tried again, "I could make sandwiches or..."

Max was on her feet in an instant, rushing across the room and calling hurriedly over her shoulder, "No, no thanks...I really should get going."

"Wait..Max..." She startled, when Zack fell against the door, slamming it securely shut with the weight of his body. "Don't go," he pleaded, eyes locked on her. She glared at the brass knob clenched in her hand.

"Zack," she said warningly, "Let me out."

"No. I want to talk, Max, please," he persisted, "I know we haven't been friends in awhile, and I know its my fault..."

"It wasn't your fault," Max whimpered, hating every bit of weakness revealed in just those words alone, "It wasn't. I just...I can't deal with you right now."

She buried her face in a hand, smearing the tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks. Why, why was he here now, she screamed in her mind, why was he doing this to her now; why, why couldn't he just stay in that place he disappeared to all those years ago, why, why.

He reached a hand to her arm and she jerked away from the touch more forcefully than she intended. She steeled herself, locked away the stirring emotions, and fixed him with a glare. He was looking angry, hurt, at a distant spot on the carpet. She ignored the way his lost expression drove nails in her chest.

"Please," she whispered, "Can you please, just let me leave, please?"

Zack sighed. Rolled his eyes – that soft shade of green that flooded her cheeks with warmth – up to meet hers and asked, "Can't you stay for just a little bit longer? We don't have to talk about anything, you don't have to eat. Just stay a few minutes...Max, I just..." he looked back down and admitted sheepishly, "I just don't want you to go."

Jarred, Max pursed her lips, gripped the door for support. She closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, calmed her fluttering heart, looked to him again, his eyes peering imploringly at her once more.

"Zack," she quietly, shakily, informed him, "I'm already gone."

Walking alone down the street through the chilly night air, Max let silent tears cascade endlessly down her cheeks. It wasn't fair, she thought. When she had needed them the twins hadn't been there, too far away and too lost in their own personal dramas. Now, when she was more than capable of standing on her own two feet, when after so long of having no one but herself to rely on she no longer needed anyone else, now is when they won't leave her alone.

She swiped, frustrated, at the dampness, smudging the dirt on her cheeks, and tugged her beanie back on, tucking up the loose hair.

Max wrapped her bare arms tight round her slim body, shivering convulsively. She dreaded the snow that winter promised and thought about hitching her way to warmer cities. She knew some boys that did it. She'd always relied on shelters in the past to survive the cold seasons, gaining priority because of her gender, but it carried a risk. Sometimes, though it was rare but a possibility nonetheless, do-gooder volunteers at the shelter called the cops on possible runaways.

Max thought of the apartment and scowled. It wasn't the same as the Tipton Suite the boys had lived in when she'd known them, but the warmth of the Martin family was as thick there as it had been at the hotel. Goodness followed that family wherever they went.

It was nice, she admitted to herself, being near him again. She had expected, after six years, for the way his presence made her feel to change but she hadn't counted on it intensifying so much it made her knees weak and her head swim.

She thought of the girl that she'd seen him with across the street from her setup, though at the time she hadn't been certain it was him, she had gawked at the couple nonetheless. The girl had been a sweet, pretty, doll-like thing dressed in high-end apparel.

Max thought of the intimate way his hand had rested in the small of that girl's back, the way that girl had easily slipped her arms around him. He'd never think to touch Max like that, only pity on his face when he looked at her.

She let the sharp ache of her recollections cut away at her heart. It made her decision to leave a heartbroken Zack in that warm apartment easier to accept as the right choice. She felt the money in her pocket, her earnings from the Three Card Monty scam, and thought sourly, at least she could eat that night.

* * *

A/N: I know a lot of you want to see Max let her guard down, but she's been through a lot and its not easy to do that after so many years of learning not to trust anyone. Zack is kind of hard to deal with for her as it is because she has all these emotions for him, not to mention, she's already kind of a hot head and he doesn't always say the right things so it doesn't make for rational thinking. She'll get there though. Slowly the boys are chipping away at her resolve.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Thanks for all the reviews! You guys are awesome, and starting to make me feel like I should be updating twice a day.

* * *

Chapter 10:

Cody was surprised to come home and find his brother playing an intense game of Guitar Hero on the couch. It was only ten-thirty, Zack should have still been out on his date with Abigail.

"How was the musical?" Cody called to his brother over the blaring wail of Iron Maiden's _The Number of the Beast_.

"Stupid," Zack bit reply, not turning from the screen, his face grim.

"Really? The theater-house showing received rave reviews," Cody said conversationally, removing his coat and heading towards his room to hang it up. He reentered the living room and took a seat on the couch behind his brother to watch the game.

Zack was unnervingly silent. He was also missing an uncharacteristically large amount of notes. Cody frowned and looked to study his brother only to be jolted into stun.

"What the hell happened?" he demanded, jumping to his feet and grabbing Zack's shoulder in an attempt to turn the other boy towards him.

"Dude, Cody, let go! You're gonna make me fail," Zack cried, tugging out of his brother's grasp. The song ended with "booing" from the crowd and Zack cursed, tossing the plastic guitar-shaped controller to the couch in disgust. He growled at Cody, "Look what you made me do."

For a moment, Cody was taken aback by the harshness in his brother's tone but recovered quickly, "You were failing before I walked in. Now answer my question. Why does your face look like grape jelly and why do you have bandages all over your arm?"

Zack opened his mouth, closed it. He reached for the 'guitar' again and mumbled, "I fell."

"That must have been quite a tumble," Cody muttered, folding his arms over his chest, unconvinced. Zack pressed the primary colored buttons on his 'guitar', taking the game back to main menu.

"You want to play?" he asked, his voice low and unreadable.

"I guess." Cody retrieved the other 'guitar' from beside the television and waited as Zack set up the game in two-player mode and selected a song.

For nearly half-an-hour the boys played, silence between them save for the click-clack of their 'guitars', broken only once when Cody distractedly informed his brother, "Mom went to work. Said she'd be back sometime next week if she doesn't check in Sunday." To which Zack grunted response.

A little past eleven, and having just finished a near-perfect rendition of _Prayer for a Refugee_, Cody trudged into the kitchen for cans of soda pop and snacks. He returned, handing a cola over to his brother and opening the bag of Doritos he'd brought back.

"I saw Max," Zack said, taking a sip of his soda. Cody nearly dropped the can in his hand.

"What? When? Where? Did you talk to her? What did she say? What happened?"

Zack grabbed a handful of nacho flavored triangles and shoved them in his mouth. He shrugged, the crunch of the chips loud in the tense room. Cody dropped onto the couch and studied his brother next to him.

The bruise on Zack's cheek wasn't as terrible as he'd initially thought, but the bandage round his forearm was disturbing, especially with the line of red running the length of his wrist towards his elbow seeping through the white lenin. Cody wondered if the injures had to do with Max.

"She was at the theater-house," Zack went on, staring at the television screen, the game patiently waiting on the song-selection menu.

"Was she?" Cody pressed, thinking of Max going to see _Guys and Dolls_, "She didn't strike me as being very interested in the arts."

Zack rubbed his neck and lifted himself from the couch. He wandered into the kitchen and took a gulp of his cola. Cody watched concerned, he didn't like the sick feeling eating at the pit of his stomach.

"I guess she wasn't really _at_ the theater-house. She was across from it."

"Oh. Walking home or something."

Zack opened the refrigerator in the kitchen, peered inside as though searching for something and seeming to not find it, closed the door once again. He finished off his soda pop in one long chug, burped loudly to Cody's chagrin, and tossed the empty can in the sink to be cleaned and recycled later. He drummed the counter with his hands, leaned on it then looked at his brother with a smile that never reached his eyes.

"I don't think she has a home."

Cody sat back, let the words sink in.

Not having a home would make her...homeless. But that didn't make sense. The last time they'd seen Max she'd had a home. She'd lived in a house – a nice house – with her parents. He'd seen it. He'd been inside it, many times. They'd worked on projects for school there. Played video games there. He'd even had dinner there. How could she not have that six years later? It just did not make sense.

"What do you mean?" he questioned, his mouth felt dry, "Why would you think that?"

Zack had folded his arms on the counter, now leaning heavily on them, his head hanging between sagged shoulders. Cody didn't like the stillness in his usually hyperactive, goofy, cheerful brother.

"She never wears anything different," Zack began just above a whisper, "Always the same clothes. It's freezing out and she's wearing shorts and a t-shirt."

Cody frowned at the game onscreen. It kept playing the same background song on loop. Normally, he'd be annoyed by the repetitive noise, but at the moment, he found it a peaceful relief.

"I couldn't tell when she last showered." Zack went on, voice surprisingly steady, "And she's thin, Cody; really, scary thin. I couldn't tell when she last ate."

Cody was starting to feel like he couldn't breath. There wasn't any air in the room. The walls were creeping closer.

"And she's always trying to hussle people out of money."

Cody bit into his inner cheek. It crashed around his ears, the roaring waves of discontent. He hadn't thought about it, hadn't noticed, and he was supposed to be the more observant twin, but Zack was right. Zack had caught every little puzzle piece of Max's derelict lifestyle and fit them together to reveal the bigger picture.

Max was homeless.

"Oh man...the basketball game," Cody moaned, suddenly feeling like he could cry. He covered his face with a hand, "How many meals did that asshole Jason and his friends cost her? How many meals did _we_ help them cost her?"

Zack flexed his hand into a fist; loosened, then tightened it again. He hadn't thought of that.

"We have to tell mom," Cody said decisively.

Zack's eyes widened and he snapped them onto his brother, "What? No! We can't."

"Zack, if you're right and Max is living on the streets, she could be in a lot of trouble. It's dangerous," Cody argued, "She could get hurt or even end up de..." he faltered, lowered his eyes, swallowed hard, "Dead."

"I offered her a sandwich and she bolted, Cody," Zack shot back, "If we told mom about this, Max might...she might disappear for good. We'd never see her again."

"Well we can't just do nothing," Cody cried, "If we tell mom then mom will know what to do."

"Mom will just want to call the cops," Zack pointed out.

"And why exactly would that be a bad thing?"

Zack pushed away from the counter and groaned in frustration. "You're supposed to be the smart one, figure it out!"

Cody crossed his arms and glared at the other boy.

"If Max finds out we called the cops on her we'll _definitely_ never see her again," Zack hissed.

"Then what do you want to do?" Cody demanded. Zack sighed, shaking his head. He hit the counter top with a pulled punch that popped dramatically.

"I don't know."

The twins fell quiet, lost in their new revelation. Neither had ever confronted something so difficult. It was hard to imagine their childhood friend in such a terrible predicament. While troublemakers right down to the bone, the boys were ultimately kind-hearted, and they ached with want to help. They were just at loss as to how to do it.

It probably didn't matter, they both mourned hopelessly, it wasn't as though either of them knew exactly where Max was at that moment.

* * *

A/N: I liked this chapter. I like writing the boys together.

One of the reviewers expressed concern of Cody lacking in the story. I assure you, he has some good (solo) chapters coming up and there will be more of him interacting with Bailey. Sadly, they aren't really the main dish of the story...I considered writing a sequel that focused more on their relationship but I don't know. Unfortunately, I have to admit, Zack is my favorite of the twins...which means, I like to beat him up. :) Cody, to me, is a more stable character; whereas, Zack has a lot more room to grow in a story.

I don't know, that's just my opinion anyhow. Let me know what you think! I know it's not an exciting chapter, but the boys are starting to piece things together and explanations are soon to follow.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: How funny...I mention possibly updating twice in a day and the reviews drop. I threaten never posting again and they jump to new heights. Psychology of reviewers...Anyhow, Nikki mentioned something about sending me dessert and since she appealed to my sweet tooth, I thought 'snap, I better post two chapters next time'. So, here's the first. Thank you all for your really awesome comments, they warm my very cold days!

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Chapter 11:

Cody leaned against the Boardwalk railing, staring luridly out at sea. He missed it; the salty open air, the soothing motion of the boat under foot, the rush of knowing adventure lay just beyond the horizon. He sighed, tilting his head to the side when he caught out of the corner of his eye the lanky teenager approaching him, a wide grin splitting his features.

"Hey, Tapeworm," he called.

"Hello, Cody," the other boy responded.

It was comforting in a way, how little Tapeworm had changed over the years. He was still taller than Cody, by about a head, and still wore his naturally curly brown locks shaggy. However, he was no longer the awkward, nerd he used to be. He was a good-runner, a bit stocky, no longer clumsy with his long limbs, so he somehow managed to join the football team at school. Added to his shy, modest nature, it made him somewhat popular with the girls and he'd settled into something committed a year back with a sweet and very intelligent member of the chess and math clubs, Lorelei.

Cody was relieved when he'd returned to Boston after so long at sea, and despite all the little changes in both boys' lives, that they could easily pick up their friendship right where it had left off. It felt as though they had never been apart.

That Saturday morning, they were on their way to visit the Museum of Science, there was a Laserlab Exhibit on display that had both boys hopping with excitement.

"I cannot wait to see those beams at work," Tapework giddily exclaimed, the two were walking side-by-side now in the direction of the museum.

"I agree. This exhibit should prove to be very _illuminating_," Cody replied. They both broke into jittery chuckles at the pun.

It wasn't too long a walk to the museum, a vast building of smooth white walls and large polished windows. They paid the entry fee and entered, a giant replica of a Tyrannosaurus Rex skeleton greeting them in the center of the lobby. On that bottom floor there was an information kiosk manned by a uniformed lady in black-rimmed glasses, a gift store, a cafeteria, as well as a ticketbooth for the Imax with screens displaying current showings and times. Several escalators were nearby, rolling upwards to higher levels and all the exhibits.

Tapeworm took a deep breath, the place smelled of chemical cleaners underlined with the faint scent of tourist body odor. He smiled warmly.

"Where to first, Cody? Do you want to see the Bees exhibit? Oh, or Nanotechology?" he blushed suddenly and seemingly from his toes all the way to the roots of his hair, "Or what about..." he snickered, "...the How Your Life Began exhibit."

The suggestion caused both boys to break into half-suppressed childish giggles and they slapped at one another's shoulders good-naturedly.

"How about we start at the top and work our way down," Cody decided. Tapeworm couldn't argue with the logic in that proposal, so they began the escalator ride up.

"So, have you and Zack finally adjusted to being back ashore?" Tapeworm asked conversationally. Cody bobbed his head a bit thoughtfully.

"I guess," he answered, "It was really weird those first few months. I think I miss it more than Zack."

"That's understandable. After all, you did leave a piece of your heart on that boat," Tapeworm pointed out. A dreamy look passed over Cody's eyes. He sighed.

"Ah...Bailey. When I think of the distance between us..." he paused then stated brightly, "I calculate an estimation of both the miles and kilometers apart we are every night based on the S.S. Tipton's last docking point, next travel destination, wind speed and current."

"Really? That's so awesome!"

"It helps me sleep at night having a guestimate of how far away she is," Cody confessed.

"Dude, you are so romantic," Tapeworm gushed candidly. On the second floor, they boarded the next escalator up.

"How are things between you and Lorelei?" Cody asked, "Last time I saw you together she seemed very taken with you."

It was Tapeworm's turn to gaze dreamily into the distance. "Lorelei," he murmured, "I finally understand what all the great poets were talking about in those love sonnets. My sweet Lorelei, dare I compare thee to a summer's day?"

Third floor, the boys clambered onto the last escalator up.

"Look at us, Tapeworm. Two men in love," Cody exclaimed, slapping his friend heartily on the back, "Can you remember – it feels like just yesterday – when we were nothing more than two lowly geeks who thought of girls as being infested with cooties? But now see how we've grown."

"Yes, we are men of j'adour," Tapeworm joined in, "Cool, suave, handsome..."

"And hanging out at the museum on a Saturday," Cody realized.

"Exactly," Tapeworm agreed wholeheartedly, grinning cheerily. Cody shook his head and smiled, thinking to himself, don't ever change Tapeworm.

At the top floor, the boys wandered into a hall featuring an exhibit on medical imaging technologies. They wandered along to the Dinosaur room, then into a feature on wind turbines; chatting and laughing the entire way.

Despite the lightheartedness of the museum trip, Cody found his mind wandering back to last night's conversation with his brother. Which was reasonable, he told himself. It was kind of hard to spend time with Tapeworm and not think of the first time they had met, the first time they had _all_ met: Zack and Cody, Tapeworm, and Max.

Max was homeless. And now Cody's sweet and spunky childhood memory of her was forever tainted. He could no longer remember her with happiness. Every good time was marred by the sorrow of knowing her fate those many years later.

By the time the boys made it to the laser exhibit, Cody had lost most – if not all – of his enthusiasm for the day. He watched disinterestedly, a distant smile on his lips, as Tapeworm played with the demonstrations. It didn't take long for Tapeworm to notice the quiet that had befell his friend.

"What's wrong, Cody? You're not disappointed they don't have the laser foosball table running, are you?"

"Hm...? Oh, no," Cody startled, shaking his head then sighing, "Sorry. I was just thinking about something."

"Your lady fair?"

Blood drained from Cody's face as he suddenly pictured spitfire Max wrapped in his arms, kissing him passionately. The thought was frightening, to say the least. He shook it very quickly from his head.

"No!" he snapped, receiving an odd look from his friend. He quickly amended, "Sorry...uh...no, not about Bailey. It's nothing, really."

"Oh, okay."

For the next several minutes they wandered exhibits in an awkward silence. Now it felt that neither was very interested in the displays. It just wasn't as much fun if they weren't both excited.

"Hey...uh...Tapeworm?" Cody began. The taller boy quirked his head to the shorter. "Do you remember a girl we used to hang out with...uh...her name was – well she went by...uh...Max?"

Tapeworm stiffened. He looked away.

"Why?"

Cody frowned. That wasn't the reaction he had expected. Carefully, he picked out a lie, "I...uh...just got to thinking about old times the other day. Was...um...flipping through old yearbooks and...uh...came across her face. I hadn't seen her in years – six, to be exact – and got to wondering, you know, why that was."

Tapeworm began fidgeting with one of the interactive experiments in the Investigate Exhibit.

"Tapeworm...?"

"...six years."

"Yeah."

"That would be about sixth...seventh grade?"

Cody nodded, eying his friend curiously. Tapeworm let go of the module he was playing with and walked a few paces away. He scratched at his head and sighed slightly.

"That would've been about when...yeah...it probably was then..."

"Tapeworm, what is it?" Cody pried, becoming impatient with his friend's suddenly strange behavior.

"Uh...nothing. It's just, that was about when her dad passed away, is all."

Cody frowned, heart cinching. "I never heard about her dad dying."

"Oh...well...yeah, that makes sense," Tapeworm said, shaking his head and smiling somewhat grimly, "She didn't want to tell anyone. I only found out because our moms used to be close. Don't you remember, end of sixth grade, those two weeks she took off."

"I thought she was on vacation."

"No. That was when her dad died. He'd been sick for a really long time, so it was sort of expected. He had cancer."

"Wow," was all Cody could manage. He was pale, his ears ringing.

Tapeworm nodded, hands shoved in his pockets and staring at the shining tiled floors.

"How could she not tell us any of this?"

"I don't know," Tapeworm shrugged, "She told me not to mention it to you guys...to anyone really...but she said especially not you both. She made violent threats and I was pretty sure at the time she'd carry them out if I talked."

"But why especially not us?" Cody demanded, confusion riddling his face. Again, Tapeworm shrugged.

"Like I said, I don't know. If I had to guess...I'd say, she didn't want to lose face."

"But how does that make sense?" Cody cried, growing frustrated, "Why would she think that her father dying would make her _lose face_? If anything you'd think she would have told us, its the kind of situation when you would need your friends most, isn't it? Unless..." he choked on his next words, "Unless...she never thought of us as friends."

Tapeworm said nothing.

"Is that why? Zack and I weren't her friends, so she couldn't tell us?"

"I don't know. No...well...I don't know." Tapeworm rubbed at his face. "Look, Cody, I don't really have any answers, I don't know what she was thinking. I never knew what she was thinking. And I haven't seen Max in a few years, myself. Our moms don't even talk anymore."

"Right...uh...thanks for telling me," Cody murmured, frowning and folding his arms.

"Let's go look at the Live Animal Exhibit," Tapeworm suggested, "It's your favorite."

"I do love the cute animals," Cody conceded. They fell into step beside one another, mulling over the past and wondering at what happens to a person when they exit your life. Time, it seems, moves on for everyone.

* * *

A/N: Ah...the plot thickens! Well, another puzzle piece falls into place anyhow. There are twelve chapters left so things are going to start unraveling soon.

I had this sort of theory in my head...that you can't really write a Max comeback without including Tapeworm...and originally when I was writing this I had an entirely different and little bit larger role for him but it didn't work out that way. It's too bad, I quite like Tapeworm and Cody together...they're cute little nerds.

Side note: There is a Museum of Science in Boston, and all the exhibits mentioned are currently on display there according to their website; however, since I have never been there, the layout I described is probably entirely off. I actually based it more off the museum in Denver. I also forgot to mention in the previous chapter, in regards to the theater house on Main and Third. I've never been to Boston, though I know most all cities have a Main st and a Third st. I don't know if these streets cross in Boston, I highly doubt there's a theater on the corner there, there's definitely no Saigon Alley (but you all knew that...) and, as far as I know, if the streets do cross it's probably in a very nice, well-maintained area. Main street usually is well-kempt except in Vegas.

Alright, please let me know what you think!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: And here is post number two...

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Chapter 12:

The party was Bob's idea, at least that's what Zack told Cody, though they both knew the reckless, older twin would have sought out another source of depravity that Saturday night had the loveable redhead not given in to hosting a shindig at his house. Parents out of town for the weekend, Bob had decided a small social gathering was an appropriate decision.

Of course, by the time the twins arrived, half the school was there as well as twenty or so other teenagers that attended other Boston high schools or one of the colleges. Cody found Bob inside slumped, devastated at the top of the staircase; his girlfriend and Cody's ex, Barbara was attempting to console him.

Zack disappeared into the crowd of dancing and excited chattering. Some people had brought different bottles and cases of alcoholic beverages, and one generous donor had even brought a keg. He fetched himself a beer from the tap and grabbed for Cody, ever the prude, a strawberry wine cooler.

"It's alright, Bob..." Cody soothed, patting his friends shoulder and accepting the drink his brother brought for him.

"I'll help you clean it all up tomorrow," Barbara vowed, clutching her boyfriend's hands. She smiled wryly at Cody and Zack, explaining, "Someone passed out fliers."

"Bummer," Zack lamented, then, in a manner his brother found very suspicious, ducked away from the conversation back into the mass of partiers.

Cody wasn't much for boozing and schmoozing, he tended to avoid the high school party scene, but Zack was in his element, dancing and drinking and living it up with everyone else. As Cody sipped his wine cooler and kept Bob and Barbara company; Zack worked his way through several beers, three shots of Jack, a shot of vodka, and a couple cups of mixed concoction called 'Jungle Juice'. All the while, he flirted with the ladies, and showed off his slightly-sloppy-from-intoxication dance moves.

Cody watched his brother intently, hoping the party would offer Zack a needed reprieve from the week's events. He hadn't yet told the other boy what he had learned from Tapeworm, and wasn't entirely sure that he would. It weighed on his mind, though, like a lingering bad aftertaste and he wasn't sure what ate at him more, the apparent heartache Max had endured in silence all those years ago or that he and Zack had been so low on her totem pole of important people she hadn't wanted them to know she was suffering.

All this time the twins had been wondering if they were to blame for Max fading away, as though they had thrown her from the speeding train of their lives. But what if the reality was she had thrown them away; effortlessly, joyously? Cody didn't like the inclination. He hated to think how his brother would feel about it.

Despite all appearances, Zack was not enjoying the party. He drank more in hopes that it would help him forget and have fun but the more he drank the worse he felt. He flirted with every girl he saw, catching a hot babe's attention always made him happy, but as he chatted with the girls he kept thinking it wasn't Max and where the hell was she anyways; which only depressed him more. So he danced, because it was the only thing he didn't actually have to think about, but even that wore on him eventually.

In the end, he found himself aimlessly wandering the house. He'd been to Bob's on several occasions; it was nice, large, two stories, and had a good-sized backyard. Bob's parents kept it maintained, spic and span, they were prim, proper people; father only took drink at a bar, mother stayed at home and cleaned all day. There was something surreal about there being so many empty beer bottles on the kitchen counters, drunk teenagers stumbling through the rooms, and a circle of kids outside passing around a bong.

That was why he decided at first he was dreaming when he saw her weaving through the thicket of people. She had come from the bathroom, her hair slightly damp, clothes clinging to her body in that odd way garments do when the skin isn't fully dry. She looked refreshed and somehow, innocent again; an angel, he wondered in his drunken haze, or maybe a ghost. His feet moved out of his control, following her, and he didn't think about it. After all, he body moves of its own accord in a dream.

They were heading down the street, away from the crowd and noises, past people that littered the lawn, into the darkness and the cold. When they were far enough from the house that the pad of his feet on the pavement no longer blurred with the ruckus of the party, she stopped and spun round.

And when she questioned, her body tense and senses on high alert, "Zack? What are you doing?" He finally realized it wasn't a dream.

"Max," he started, his words slurring, "Why were you...party...er...here?"

"Are you drunk?" she asked, suddenly looking very uncomfortable.

"Little..." he held up his fingers to indicate exactly how 'little' but forgot what he was doing with them, so wiggled them uselessly in the air instead. Max rolled her eyes.

"Great," she muttered, massaging her forehead, "Do you have a...chaperone? You know, designated driver...or something?"

Zack furrowed his brow, thinking on the question. "Cody."

"Okay good. Well then, go back to the party." She made a shooing motion with her hand.

"No," Zack stubbornly told her slapping his arms over his chest in an attempt to look intimidating and only managing to pull off petulant, "You...I need to ask a questions or...answers...we need to talk."

Max ran her hands over her hair and groaned in frustration. "No, we don't. You need to go home and sleep off the buzz, bud."

"Thas...later. I can sleep later," he argued, "You need to talk. To me. Max."

"Oh...augh..._what_ is with you? _Why_ are you everywhere? I can't go to the courts, I can't play cards, and now, I can't even steal a shower in peace! I'm out of here." But she stayed where she was, arms wrapped around herself to hold in her warmth, glaring at the pavement.

It was getting to be too much and Max felt like any moment she would break. Everywhere she turned he was there, taunting and tormenting her. Tempting her. She startled when Zack clapped hands on to her shoulders and she shifted uncertainly, her frightened eyes meeting his glossy stare.

She really was very pretty, Zack thought, always had been, with those doe eyes and thick lashes. She was cold, he could see it in the way her body reverberated in the night chill, her pale cheeks splotched pink. And she was afraid, a deer caught in headlights. He couldn't understand what she was so scared of but he felt the desire – no, the _need _to protect her.

"S'alright, Max," he mumbled, "I'm here...I wasn't..before...but I am now."

She flushed. He pulled her forward into an awkward embrace and she instinctively brought her hands up to half-push away and half-furl against his chest. Slowly, his face dropped into the crook of her neck, and his weight withered into dead.

"Dammit," she whimpered, "Do not pass out on me, Zack. I swear to God if you pass out..."

She struggled under the taller teen's bulk, but felt her legs giving way, and sank with him to the ground.

"Stay, Max," he murmured, hot against her skin, "Stay. Talk to me."

She pushed him up away from her, holding him back with her hands cupped at his neck, and he rested his forehead against her own, eyes half-closed. She searched him; desperately, pathetically, but his near unconscious expression was too unreadable.

"...stay..." he insisted.

"Okay," she cried exasperated, then softly whispered, "Okay. I'll stay. God, your a persistent pain in the ass."

It didn't take long for Cody to realize his brother was gone. He scoured the house, asked around though inebriated teens made poor witnesses, and eventually learned that 'someone that looked very much like you – are you sure it wasn't you – wandered out of the house and down the street that way'.

Cody went sprinting but he found he didn't have to run far. By the time he reached them, Zack was out completely, sprawled across the sidewalk, his head resting on Max's very tiny lap, as she traced the hair away from his face with gentle fingertips. She flickered a glare up to the advancing twin then hastily pulled her hand away from the boy laying atop her as though suddenly burned.

"Hey...Max," Cody carefully greeted.

"Great, you're here. Get _this_ off me," she seethed, indicating Zack with a violent hand motion. Cody ignored her, instead removing his jacket and tossing it over her shoulders.

"Jeez, Max, you're soaked to the bone. Why are you out in the cold all wet? Are you trying to catch pneumonia?"

She glared heatedly, but it lost all effect when she succumbed to a fit of sneezes.

"I just took a shower," she explained, rubbing at her nose with the collar of her t-shirt.

"At a stranger's house during a party?" Cody questioned, incredulous. Max opened her mouth to protest and he held up a hand, "I know he followed you from the house. I have eyewitnesses."

"Wonderful. You gonna call the cops? Have me arrested for stealing toiletries?"

Cody sighed, kneeling in front of the feisty young woman, and taking in his brother's disheveled form.

"He's worried about you, you know?"

Distantly she replied, "He should be worrying about things that matter."

Cody turned his gaze back towards the house and the rowdy party, eying the twins' car parked on the corner. There was so much he wanted to say to Max at that moment, lectures roiling in his mind, painful questions he needed answered; but he knew if he pressed, she'd take off. The situation needed to be handled delicately.

Max had a lot of pride, he couldn't trample on that. He needed to convince her to leave with him, maybe go back to the apartment where they could chat; he needed to get her to open up.

"Hey...uh...could you help me drag Zack to the car?" Cody asked, smirking sheepishly, "I think you know how heavy he is."

Max rolled her eyes, "Sure. Whatever."

Between the two scrawny teens, they managed to hoist Zack onto his feet, then each taking an arm over their shoulders, they started back towards the house. For several paces they were silent. Cody took it slow for Max's benefit but acted as though he was straining under his brother's weight.

"Bob," Cody mumbled when the quiet began getting to him. Max glanced past Zack with a quirked brow. "It's the name of the guy, who's house you showered in. Bob."

"Oh. His shampoo smells nice."

"Yeah, he's pretty crazy about his hair. Its really red."

"Ahh...then, Bob was the guy crying at the top of the stairs?"

"Yup," Cody forced a stop to give Max a break and pretended to be readjusting Zack.

"He was sitting up there with that pretty Asian chick," Max noted and Cody nodded.

"Barbara."

"Weren't you dating her?"

Cody ignored the shameful sting of that question as he answered, "Yes, but that was a while ago. They're together now, which is fine. I think she's happier with him than she ever was with me."

"That's kind of hard to believe. You Martin twins hit like a hurricane. Fierce, powerful, and nothing but destruction in your wake."

Cody said nothing. He wasn't sure what she meant but he was fairly certain she wasn't really talking about him. They paused again to let her re-stabilize.

"Zack, you really need to stop drinking so much," Cody momentarily chastised his unconscious brother. Max snickered at it then frowned slightly.

"He doesn't drink _that_ much...does he?"

"Hm...? Oh, no, not really," Cody answered, "No more than the average high-schooler I guess."

They had reached the car, and Cody set his half of Zack against the door while he worked the keys from his pocket.

"He has been lately, though, since we got back to Boston. On the boat it was a lot harder to sneak alcohol. All the staff knew we were underage and Moseby was always breathing down our necks."

"The boat?"

"What?"

Cody glanced up to his confused companion and realized he'd forgotten for a moment that she wouldn't have known about the boys' semesters at sea, it was long after they'd stopped talking with her.

"Uh...yeah. Zack and I spent a couple years of high school on this study aboard program called Seven Seas High," he explained, "On the Luxury Liner, the S.S. Tipton. My mom got a really great tuition discount because she's an employee."

"Oh." Max got a faraway look in her eye that caused Cody's heart to jump. Too late, he thought, talking about the high-class adventures the boys had been having might have been the mistake that would drive her away.

"It was fun," he went on stiffly, "But then, because of the recession, the Tipton company started losing business; less people were traveling, you know? They started raising tuition, cutting back on my mom's hours and salary, until it was too expensive to let us keep going. We've been back in Boston about five – maybe six months now?"

"I see," Max murmured, "Classes on a cruise ship. Sounds great."

Cody finally opened the car door and the two, with a bit of struggle, slid Zack across the backseat. Then Cody closed the door and looked to Max.

"Well, this has been a blast," she snarled.

"I could really use help getting him up to our apartment, also," Cody began. Max sighed, eying him suspiciously, "Please, Max. It's a short drive. We'll stop for coffee on the way, my treat for your troubles."

Max rubbed at her face furiously. "Why is it so hard to say no to you guys?"

She slid into the passenger seat and eagerly, Cody jogged round the car and jumped behind the wheel.

* * *

A/N: Aww...drunk Zack...he's very lovey when he's drunk. Jungle Juice, btw, is a terribly delicious drink when made right and I highly recommend that (if and when you are of drinking age...) you avoid it like the plague.

So, when writing this I kind of had in mind that Cody would be the one that could speak rationally with Max for a couple reasons. Namely, Zack strikes me as a brash character who isn't very well-equipped at handling complex emotions, my twisted older version of Max is a hothead who isn't well-equipped at handling any emotions, and the both of them have very complicated emotions for one another. It kind of clouds their judgement and makes it difficult for them to think clearly when their around one another. Don't fret though, there will be some serious Zack/Max moments coming up very soon.

Anyhoo, please, please, please, review. You read my rant, and it still remains the same. If you want more, you cannot leave me hanging. Though, I do love the consistent reviewers who pop up nearly every chapter: jocsa, Riana Kaiba, Sienna Hearts Disney Couples, Nikki (thank you for your lovely reviews). I appreciate you all taking your time to review as many chapters as you do and for sticking with my story this far! This is the halfway mark and its all downhill from here (well, maybe a little bump or two along the way) and I hope you liked it.

Let me know what you think!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Because you guys were so awesome with your reviews, I decided to do another two chapter update (sorry, Sienna Hearts Disney Couples...I know you want three, but I gotta hold something back, haven't I? There's only twelve chapters left...okay, maybe that's just my cruel side). Here's the first of two...

* * *

Chapter 13:

It was obvious from the way Max hung back at the entrance she wasn't used to the stuffy, elitist atmosphere of the Starbucks they had stopped at. She edged her way in, warily eying patrons and employees, and staying close to Cody's back like a child clinging to a parent as proof of right to be there. She still wore his jacket, it engulfed her with its size, draping down nearly to her knees, the sleeves covering her hands entirely. She wasn't certain if it was because she was so small or if Cody had really gotten so much taller.

"What do you want?" Cody questioned, studying the menu.

"Oh...uh..." she followed his gaze, narrowed her eyes and tensed her shoulders shyly. None of the items sounded like something she would consider drinking, they didn't even seem to be in English. She glanced to the door as though considering making a break for it. The gentleman behind the counter eyed the two patiently.

"Would you like to try a mocha frapachino?" he asked. Max shot him a dubious look.

"Uh...give us a moment," Cody told the employee, who nodded, and made himself appear busy doing something else.

"I don't really care. Just get me something hot," Max said, then sneezed.

Cody gave her a knowing smile, and stepped to the counter to order, while she wandered away a bit, reading the coffee bags on display, and studying the melancholy paintings hung on the walls. When he returned, Cody lightly nudged Max's shoulder to get her attention and motioned to one of the tables. They took a seat and he laid out a couple bags on the table, each holding a pastry.

"Sorry, I was hungry; thought it would be rude to eat in front of you, so I got you something too. That is, if you want it," he explained when she looked at him quizzically.

"What is it?"

"Well you have a choice," Cody grinned, "I picked out my favorites, apple strudel muffin and a pumpkin scone. Whichever one you want is up to you, I love 'em both."

Max shrugged, plucking at one of the bags and peering inside. "This one's fine."

Cody took the other bag, leaning back in his chair, and watched the people behind the counter preparing their drinks. He kept Max in his peripheral, fighting the satisfied smirk when she broke off a few crumbs of the muffin she'd chosen and popped them into her mouth. She tried to hide it but it was hard to miss the way she savored each morsel.

When the employee called out Cody's name, he left quickly to retrieve their drinks, gently setting a steaming hot cup in front of Max, nibbling at her pastry. She immediately grabbed hold of it to warm her hands. He returned to his seat.

"How's Zack's arm?" Max questioned, and Cody glanced up at her over his coffee, he had popped the lid and was blowing on it to cool it down. He had already guessed that Max was some how involved with Zack's injuries, but was surprised she brought it up.

"Alright, I guess. He wouldn't let me change the bandage this morning."

Max blushed, but made no comment, leaning over her coffee to let the steam heat her cheeks.

"So what exactly happened last night? He didn't really go into details."

"He came to my rescue," she muttered, rolling her eyes. Cody smiled at the way her features softened when talking about it and she confessed, "I really wish he hadn't. He could've really gotten hurt."

"That's Zack for you, though. Leaps before he thinks."

She fell quiet again, focused on the table. "It wouldn't have been worth it, if he had gotten hurt."

_She_ wouldn't have been worth it, Cody mentally translated.

"I think that's for Zack to decide," he told her.

Again, silence. Max took her first sip of the coffee, made a face at its bitter-sweetness. She peeled off another piece of muffin. Chewed it thoughtfully.

"Max. I know," Cody started, and her eyes flickered up to him wild with fright, "...about your dad." Her gaze fell back down, she held her coffee tight enough to turn her knuckles white.

"...Tapeworm..." she muttered disgruntled under her breath.

"Why didn't you tell us?"

"It happened a long time ago. Its old news, now."

"Its not old news to me, Max," Cody hissed, then swallowed back his frustration and eased his tone, "I should have known a long time ago."

"Don't take it so personal, Cody, nobody knew," Max replied.

"How can I not take it personal, Max? I wasn't nobody to you then, at least I didn't think I was, but now I'm not so sure."

"You don't understand..."

"No, I don't, Max! I really don't. I thought we were friends," Cody cried, unable to contain the anger any longer.

"We were friends..."

"Then how come you couldn't tell me? Hell, Max, if we were such good friends, why would you go out of your way to make sure I specifically didn't ever find out? Why?"

"Cody, don't do that. I wanted to tell you, I did!"

"Then why didn't you?"

"Because then you would have told Za...aa..." she choked back the word, turned to glare at empty space and Cody's mouth clamped shut with a hard clack of teeth. It felt like the coffee shop was spinning out of control.

Though it was somewhat a comfort to know he'd only been left out of Max's loop by brotherly association – and she was right, back then, of course he would have told Zack if he'd known – it wasn't readily evident why she hadn't wanted Zack to know. She had been closer to him than Cody. At least, at the time, that's how it had seemed.

"And why would that have been a bad thing?"

Max folded her arms over her lap, sniffled.

"Do you hate Zack?"

Her eyes widened, and she snapped, "No," quick enough to give Cody whiplash. He nodded, twisted his coffee cup on the table so that he could see the Starbucks insignia on its front.

"Do you love him?" Cody ventured, peeking curiously up at her through loose strands of shaggy blond bangs.

She placed a hand over her face, rubbing away unseen tears. Wearily, she answered, "...no, of course not. That's ridiculous. I haven't seen him in six years, I don't even know who he is anymore."

They were quiet, a silence between them only jarred by the jangle of the door opening as a handful of giggling and twittering girls walked in. Max chewed her bottom lip. Cody searched for something to say.

"Then why didn't you want him to know? Did you think it would change something between you two?" Cody gently persisted.

"I don't know."

"Well, did you think he would tease you or push you away?"

Max shrugged.

"Or did you think he wouldn't do anything?"

"Like I said, I don't know...all of the above, maybe," Max whispered harshly, "I was scared, alright. I was scared he wouldn't do anything, I was scared that he would. I was scared he'd push me away, scared he'd be there for me. I was scared...I was scared because...I didn't know and...I didn't want to." She shook her head, a few stray tears made it down her cheeks and she quickly swiped them away, "All I did know was that if he found out, he would start to look at me differently. Pityingly."

"Oh, Max..." Cody began ruefully only to be interrupted by a shrill screech.

"_Zachary Martin, you two-timing date ditcher!_"

Cody blanched noticeably, "Oh God."

In all her Gucci glory, Abigail marched over to the table where Cody and Max sat, stopping in a powerful stance, feet slightly apart, hands on hips, and glowering down her nose at the two.

"How _dare_ you disappear on our date like that! And without so much as a word. I just turn around, and you're gone. We left at intermission to go look for you! _I had to get a ride home with Blain! _Can you possibly even begin to imagine how mortified I was?"

"...wait...Abby," Cody made a meek attempt to cut in.

"And don't you _dare_ start with an apology. That is all I ever get from you, I'm sorry Abby this and I'm sorry Abby that. You are the worst, Zachary, simply the worst! I do not know why I give you so many chances."

"Abigail...could you please just..."

"Oh and don't start in with begging for forgiveness! I called you I don't know how many times last night and not once – _not once_ – did you return any single one of my calls. Do you have any idea how expensive the gift is going to have to be for me to forgive you for this?"

"...will you just hold on a moment and let me..."

"I don't want to hear it, Zachary! I spend all night fretting about your well-being, only to walk in here and find you with this..." she flicked her hand an astonished Max's direction, "..._hideous wet rag_. I mean, what is she even wearing? Is that...are those _boy_ shorts from K-Mart? Oh my God, Zachary, does this disgusting little tramp have on your jacket?"

Max pulled said jacket tighter around her willowy figure, glaring uncomfortably out the store window and something hot flashed before Cody's eyes. He finally slammed the table and snapped, "Abigail, shut up!" The prissy brunette gasped in shock but fell silent. "I'm _not_ Zack. I'm Cody."

"Wha...?" Abby looked confused to Max, who nodded.

"It's true," she confirmed, "He's Cody."

Abigail straightened, tipping her nose into the air and flipping her hair over a shoulder and without even the decency to look abashed by her mistake of identity, announced, "Well, if you see your brother, tell him to call me."

And like the cold wind she brought with her, Abigail breezed away. The two teens left behind felt akin to a trailer park after the tornado hit.

"What...was that?" Max finally managed to stammer out.

Unable to meet her eyes, Cody quietly admitted, "Zack's girlfriend."

Max formed a silent 'oh' with her mouth.

A few heartbeats passed.

"She can't tell you two apart?"

Mournfully, Cody shook his head.

* * *

A/N: Confession time: I kind of wrote in the first chapter that there were a lot of people who still couldn't tell Zack and Cody (when separate) apart, just so I could write this scene with Abby yelling at Zack and it really being Cody. I didn't get to use the line in this story, so I'll just tell ya', Max can always tell the twins apart because only one of them can make her heart race (two guesses as to which one...)

I knew from the start of this story that Cody had to be the one Max opened up to first, for the reasons I stated in the last chapter. But don't worry, Zack will get his chance.

Let me know what you think!


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: And here's the second update...

* * *

Chapter 14:

It definitely took the two teens to lift Zack up the stairs and Cody was glad he'd convinced Max to come along with him, though he was mildly surprised she didn't bail at the coffee shop.

About a third of the way up the stairs, which getting even that far was a struggle to say the least, they were able to rouse Zack enough that he did a bit of the climbing himself and even walked to his bedroom of his own accord. They heard him crash on the bed and decided it best to leave him alone.

Cody collapsed onto the couch and Max stood rigid near the door, obviously torn between the welcoming warmth of the apartment and the cold familiarity of the outdoors.

"Thanks for your help, Max. I'm sorry Zack's a dumbass," he said.

"You and me both," Max muttered, then clearing her throat, "Cody...about what I told you at the coffee shop."

"I won't tell Zack."

"Thanks."

"It's not for you," Cody said, though the words were cold he kept his tone wistful, "i don't want to hurt my brother. He's used to shouldering the blame for everything and if I tell him you closed off from us because of him, he'll just think it's another thing he screwed up."

Max nodded. She slipped the jacket off and set it on the table then headed for the door. Cody sat up on the couch.

"If you want, I can give you a ride wherever you need to go," he offered. Max glanced at him, hand lightly touching the front doorknob.

"Uh...that's alright," she smiled, though it looked more like a grimace, "I'll walk."

"It's late and it's cold. I can't, with good conscience, let you go walking anywhere," Cody persisted, lifting himself off the couch and taking a few steps towards her, "It's not a problem, just tell me where to take you. Its the least I can do, dragging you all the way here."

"No. Really. It's fine."

"Because you don't have anywhere to go?"

Max's heart thumped pathetically against her ribcage. She didn't know why he bothered asking, it was clear he already knew the answer. She balled her hands into fists, body trembling with sudden rage.

"What do you want me to say?"

Silence.

"If I tell you a lie, will you let me leave?"

Cody lowered his face, his hair shadowing his expression. "I don't let you do anything. I can't force you to stay if you want to go, can I? If you really want to go, Max, the door is there. And if you _didn't_ want to go – well, the couch is comfortable and we've got an extra blanket, and my mom won't be home tonight. And if, at some point later in the night, you decide you do want to go, the door will still be there."

Max let her fingers unfurl, and her tense muscles loosen slightly.

"It's been awhile...since I've...slept...on a couch," she hesitantly admitted. Cody figured that meant it had been awhile since she'd slept on something comfortable.

"I'll get a blanket," he told her carefully so as not to strike a cord with her highly-sensitive flight instinct.

He retrieved one of his mom's many extra-quilts from the linen closet and brought it back to the living room. Max was standing by the door still but she'd turned away from it. He set the blanket on the couch.

"There's a bathroom back that way, if you need it," he said. He picked the remote off the coffee table, "If you want to watch T.V., this one works the set and the other one on top of the box there is for the cable. If you need me, my bedroom is this one right here," he pointed to his door, "Don't bother with Zack, right now he's dead to world."

Max covered a smile until it faded away then nodded.

"So...yeah...I'm gonna go brush my teeth. If you want anything in the kitchen go for it, I haven't gone grocery shopping in a few days so there's not much food. There's cola and root beer though, a few oranges and apples in the fridge, bananas on the counter. Glasses are in the cupboard over the sink."

"Okay."

"Right...going..." he began towards the bathroom.

"Uh...can I..." she faltered and Cody came to a halt, wheeling back round and eagerly looking to her.

"Yes?"

"Can I use your toothpaste?" she mumbled, she had removed her pack from her shoulders and was fumbling inside, "I have a brush but...toothpaste gets expensive and..." she lowered her eyes, "...tweakers like to steal it."

"Yeah...I'll leave it on the counter for you, okay?"

Max nodded. She wandered the living room again as she heard Cody down the hall preparing for bed. Examining pictures hung on the wall, she found herself near Zack's door. He hadn't closed it all the way and she could just see inside through the dark his hunkered form draped across the mess of blankets and pillows on his bed. She was aware she was now staring, a soft smile playing on her lips, warmth in her cheeks. She could see his shoulders rise and fall with each breath he took, could hear his light snores. She wondered what kind of expression he was wearing on his face.

When she heard the bathroom door click open, she startled her eyes away and focused her attention on one of the wall photos. The boys were in robes and mortar caps, dressed for eighth grade graduation and posed outside in front of Buckner Middle School. She hadn't been there that day, she recalled. She hadn't been there most days in eighth grade.

A light touch at her arm and she glanced to Cody now standing beside her in pajamas and feet bare.

"Good night," he told her. She smiled, nodded, watched as he slipped into his bedroom, the door clicking securely shut behind him.

Cody hadn't lied, the couch was comfortable, and while Max had promised herself she would only lie down a few hours then leave, she awoke the next morning to a sunlit room and muffled laughter. She glared at the time on the cable box, 12:23, and assumed with an angry groan that it wasn't midnight.

The quilt slipped off her body as she sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and finger-brushing the hair out of her face. She realized the mirthful noises were coming from Cody's room and even managed to catch a few of the boy's words between chuckles and pauses for response, "...oh, Bailey...right...no...working on it...he's..."

Max folded the quilt, setting it on the edge of the couch, then reached for her pack and shoes, kicked off somewhere on the floor. She started to tie the laces of her sneaker, then jerked up straight in surprise when one of the doors closed behind her.

"...morning," came gurgled greeting.

Her heart kicked in to overdrive. She watched, tense, as that groggy boy trudged across the room into the kitchen in his frumpy clothes from the night before, massaging his face, eyes squeezed closed.

"...why are you here?"

Heart stopped. Face flushed.

"You're the one that begged me to stay," she snapped. His eyes slowly opened and fixed on her a confused stare.

"...what?"

"You don't...remember?"

The look on his face made it painfully clear the night before was a complete blank.

In that moment, a cruelty overtook Max, and she gave him an Oscar-winning look of poignant pain, "How could you not remember? You told me I was your goddess, that you wanted to worship my body. You begged me on your hands and knees to stay with you always. I can't believe you forgot. You said you couldn't live without me, you even kissed my feet, carried me to the bed and ravished me with your love. Admittedly, you were a bit clumsy, and didn't quite seem to know exactly where to put what but it was endearing and I thought...I thought it meant something to you."

The color drained from his face. His eyes were wide. "I..._what? _Oh God, what happened last night. I don't remember anything!"

Max tried to choke back her laughter, covering her broad grin with a hand and gasped, "Calm down, calm down...nothing happened, Zack. I'm just teasing you. I made it all up, I promise, nothing happened. Sheesh, you're too easy."

He rolled his eyes, burying his face in his hands and groaned, "Jesus, Max, don't do that to me. I'm hung over, for crying out loud!"

"Oh, grow some balls," she chuckled and he shot her an angry glare that lost all effect as the corner of his lip twitched up into a smirk. Somber again, she explained, "You're brother made me stay the night after I helped him drag your sorry drunk ass home."

"Oh...um...thanks, then," Zack murmured distractedly, reaching for a cup and filling it with water.

"Right. Uh...I was just on my way out, though, so...yeah," Max stammered, tugging on her other shoe and starting for the door without bothering to lace it.

"I'm starting to feel like you're always running away from me," Zack commented. It was meant to be a joke, but the sad truth in the statement rang clear and brought Max to an immediate halt.

"That's...it's...I'm not," she argued. She turned round, met his bemused expression. He was leaning against the counter, arms folded over his chest. She felt a jolt electric down her spine and narrowed her eyes menacingly at the boy. Took a few steps towards him. Firmly she bit out, "I don't run from anyone. That includes you, Zack Martin."

"Good."

"Yeah."

"I'm glad we cleared that up."

The two became suddenly shy. Shifting their gazes awkwardly away from one another, cheeks flushed.

"So...you want to go shoot some hoops?" Zack was first to speak up.

Max eyed him. "Sure."

* * *

A/N: Riana Kaiba correctly predicted that someone would be convincing Max to stay the night! I know, some things are kind of predictable in this story (didn't I mention that before)...I least, I thought they were...but then, I wrote it so it should be "predictable" to me, after all, I know what happens next. Oh well...

Max is a liar, by the way. She runs all the time, we've all seen it practically every chapter she's been in. She just doesn't like to back down from a challenge.

Let me know what you think!


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: I lied too. :) A three chapter update ain't going to happen again, so I hope you enjoy it, because this one's for you Sienna Hearts Disney Couples.

* * *

Chapter 15:

After a quick breakfast, Zack forcing Max to eat, saying, "I don't want you to claim you were just hungry, when I kick your ass on the court", the two left the apartment and walked to the basketball courts in silence. There weren't many people in the area, and they chose an empty net, deciding to play half-court.

Zack won the coin toss, and started with the ball, dribbling it into play. He maneuvered past Max and made the first basket, grinning smugly.

"Swoosh, it's a beautiful sound," he called to her. She rolled her eyes, then stole the ball on his second attempt, shooting a basket with ease. She smirked, tilted her head, and spread her arms out, palms up in a shrug.

"You were saying?"

He shook his head at her and the game quickly heated up from there. It was hard to tell which was better, their game or their trash talking.

"Did you come to play ball or have a tea party, Max?"

"Oh, you can't touch how hot this is!"

"I think you've mistaken that tiny flicker with this raging fire over here."

"Hey, that a ball or a brick?"

At one point, Zack mockingly stepped up to Max, nearly a head taller than her, and she laughed, pushing him playfully away. They felt like kids again, wasting the hours away racing along the basketball courts. Despite the chilly weather, both were drenched in a fine layer of sweat by the time they were starting to feel tired. Max had curled up her short sleeves, Zack removed the sweater he'd brought, leaving it crumpled on the ground by the basket.

"Who's winning?" Max asked, expertly dribbling the ball low to the ground. Zack was staring her down, resting his weight on his knees, waiting for her move. He shrugged.

"Next basket wins?"

"Wins what?" Max questioned.

"I don't know," Zack joked, "A kiss?"

She shook her head and faked left. Zack's arm went out to stop her and she went to the right, dribbling round him towards the basket. He recovered quickly, chasing after her, trying to snake an arm round her waist and make a grab for the ball. The feel of their bodies in such close proximity suddenly caused both teens to blister with heat.

"Not this time," Max warned her hormones. She managed to pull away from his grasp long enough to shoot the ball. Too late to stop it, his arms fell around her and they watched, with limbs entangled, her back to his chest, as the ball arched through the air, juggled along the rim, then tipped into the basket.

Max grinned up at Zack, he rolled his eyes. Her expression fell suddenly and she blushed.

"I think you missed the block," she quietly informed him, taping her fingertips indicatively on his arm still wrapped tight round her waist. Flustered, both pulled hastily apart, and found sudden interest in their shoes.

"...uh...good game," Max said.

"Yeah, that was a nice shot." He grinned cheekily, "Did you want that kiss?"

"Hell no," Max laughed, "I play for green, boy. Cold, hard cash." The color on her cheeks was hard to miss.

"Yeah...well..." Zack shrugged, swiping his sweater from off the ground, "You did have an easy win...I wasn't exactly top of my game today."

"Oh no you didn't."

"What? Hey, I'm still hung over, remember? I was so wasted last night. Not to mention, I'm an injured man!" He took a seat on the bleachers and after a moment Max joined him.

"Why am I not surprised that you're still not a gracious loser?" Max said, "You always did the same thing when we were kids."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh really? No matter what we were playing and no matter how badly I kicked your ass, you always had some excuse for why you didn't win."

"Please," Zack snorted lightly, "You're making that up."

"Fifth grade, arcade at the mall, Saturday night in mid-April, air hockey. I won, 7 to 3. You said you stubbed your toe a couple days before and it was throwing off your balance."

"Balance is very important in air hockey, Max!"

"What about like two weeks later, video game night, when my super Kano KO'd your weak Sub-Zero for a record ten times in a row. What was your excuse then? You said you were half-blind from getting soap in your eye taking a shower that morning so it wasn't a fair fight!"

Zack groaned, tilting back to stare at the darkening sky, "Why do you remember all of this?"

Max slumped, watching in the distance the men playing a full-court game. "I don't know." A ripple of ice raced up her spine and she shivered. Zack's sweater fell into her lap. She looked questioningly to him.

"Take it. I'm not cold," he said, still gazing at the sky. She frowned, slipped her arms into the sleeves, but didn't put it over her head.

"Don't you remember anything from when we were kids?" she carefully asked.

"Of course I remember things."

Max pulled her knees up on the bleachers close to her chest. She buried her nose in her sleeve covered hand and noted that Zack's scent lingered in the fabric. It warmed her cheeks.

"I remember all the scheming," he said.

She smirked, of course.

"Remember that time Cody and me opened a kid's night club at the Tipton?"

"Yeah," she smiled, "You were such a troublemaker."

"Were? Babe, I still am."

Max rolled her eyes, sinking deeper into the sweater so that the smell of him engulfed her.

"I remember basketball," he admitted softly, "I remember, you and me, we were an unstoppable team." She nodded, smiling at the memory. He leaned forward then, his voice near her ear, "I remember you kissing me after a game."

She blushed, turned her head and flickered her eyes away.

"Yeah, and I remember a week later you were kissing another girl in the halls at school...a cheerleader, right?" she retorted. He shrugged, fell back again.

"Well, yeah, I had to keep up my rep."

She rolled her eyes and muttered, "What rep?"

Silence.

"I remember asking you to hang out and being told you had better things to do," he whispered. She flashed anger.

"I remember saying 'hi' to you and being completely ignored while you walked off with _someone_ better to do," she shot back, spinning round to lock eyes with him.

"Max..."

"Don't. Whatever you're about to say...just don't."

Again, silence.

"I remember you weren't living on the streets." He knew he shouldn't have as soon as the words left his mouth.

She tossed the sweater to him and was on her feet in a flash, rushing across the blacktop. He barely caught hold of her, gripping her bicep tight and pulling her back.

"Max, wait, please wait. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," he pleaded, "Don't run off. Please."

She spun round, her open palm connecting with his cheek in an unpleasant SMACK that thundered across the courts.

"You don't know anything about it, Zack, you don't know anything about me. You cannot step back into my life six years later and act like you know anything!"

"I get that," he murmured, searching the ground, "I don't know what you're life has been like. That's why I'm telling you to talk to me about it."

Max glared at him long and hard, "And which life do you want me to talk about? The one I live now, or the one I ran away from? Because trust me, you aren't going to want to hear about either."

Zack raised his eyes. "It...couldn't have been that bad."

"Oh yeah?" Max bit out. She spun round and lifted up her t-shirt. Zack could only stare, stunned and slightly sick. Several tens of silver canals, the remnants of long, deep, horrendous gashes, ran up and down the length of her bare back.

"Oh god...Max," Zack breathed. She let the shirt fall once more and turned to him, jaw stiff and eyes dry.

"Now tell me you want to talk about my life," she spat.

* * *

A/N: So yeah...when I was getting up the last chapter, I remembered where this chapter ended and thought it would be a better stopping point for today.

Let me know what you think!


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Sorry it took so long to get up! I was late for work this morning and couldn't update...guess I don't get that candy, huh? Thanks for the amazing reviews, you guys, they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

* * *

Chapter 16:

Zack and Max stood at a deadlock in the chilly settling night. Neither wanted to be the first to speak, and neither wanted to be the first to move.

Children at the other end of the ball court were laughing, yelling, shouting at one another.

"Pass the ball, I'm open, I'm open!"

Zack shifted, shoved his hands in his pockets. Max glanced away to the cars driving along the nearby street. Her eyes flickered back when he moved towards her. Pinned by her piercing gaze, he froze, momentarily, looked to be debating, then continued forward. He stopped short with inches between them. His hand brushed hers as though he had changed his mind halfway to taking hold of it. She chewed at her bottom lip. His forehead leaned down to her own, just barely touching.

"Come on," he said, the shake in his voice revealing the depth of his fear, "Let's go."

She lowered her eyes, nodded, and pulled reluctantly away from his comforting warmth. He fell in step a few paces behind her.

The apartment was empty. Max took a seat on the couch and Zack brought her a glass of water, gulping down his own. He set the cup aside on the coffee table and took a seat on the couch beside her, stared at the blank television screen.

"Looks like Cody went to the Library. He left a note."

Max nodded, smirked morosely. "He hasn't changed."

Zack shrugged, "He's getting better. He has a girlfriend, Bailey. She's actually really hot." He realized he was rambling, stopped and leaned back into the couch.

"All grown up, the both of you, with girlfriends and everything," she teased, it sounded bitter. Zack nodded then darted his eyes to her.

"...how did you...?"

"We ran into her last night at a coffee shop," Max said, tacitly, "She's pretty."

Zack was silent.

"Rich."

Nothing.

"She's a real girl, too, wears a lot of dresses and make-up. Must be nice."

"Max..."

"My dad died."

Zack stared at the ceiling. He thought he couldn't be shocked anymore. He barely recognized his own trembling voice, "When?"

"May 29th, 2004."

"Shit...that was...sixth grade. You never said..."

"I know. God. Wouldn't it have been a great attention grabber, though? My dad's dead, everyone look at me, I'm vulnerable and grieving and need everyone's sympathy."

Zack looked to Max. She sounded tough and her face was hard but tears were streaming steadily down her cheeks. He fought the urge to reach out to her, fearing a single touch would topple her back into her pit of silence.

"My dad died and my mom made friends with big bottles of liquor."

The air felt thick in the room. Zack shifted forward to balance his elbows on his knees, cradle his head in his hands.

"Then her boyfriend moved in. He was fifteen years younger than her, closer in age to me, and he was an angry drunk." Her voice cracked, "Sometimes I think I know everything that happened after that and sometimes I think I'm just remembering nightmares."

Zack straightened, eyes on Max. She stayed with her focus fixed forward, every now and then pausing in her story to bite her bottom lip.

"You know, it sounds sick, but at the time I preferred when he was hitting me. It wasn't that he ever...did anything...there was just something in the way he put his hands on me that..." she shook her head, eyes downcast, "I couldn't deal with it anymore. I had to get out."

She looked at the door as though to emphasize her point.

"The first time I ran, I only managed a few days. I hid at Tapeworm's. When my mom figured out where I was she came and dragged me home. The second time was only a night long. I rode the bus until I was out of money. I don't know how she found me, but she did."

She took a deep breath, it sounded hollow.

"I couldn't figure why they were always so desperate to bring me back, until I saw that shiner he gave my mom."

She wiped a hand across her face.

"And then I knew, she just wanted me there to take the brunt of his anger."

A sob choked its way from the back of her throat, and Zack gave in to his urge, placing a hand over hers clenched tight in a ball on her lap. She pushed him away, shot her eyes up to meet his.

"I realized if I was going to escape I had to destroy everything I was or they would just keep finding me," she told him, "I had to give up everything; school, sports, friends...you know, at first I was afraid to sleep on the streets. Can you imagine how much more afraid I had to be of going home to live out there?"

She fought back a few sobs, sniffed loudly.

"I learned quickly, too. When you're a girl, doesn't matter how quiet you are, everyone sees you. But when you're a boy and you keep your head down, you might as well be invisible. Carry little things, anything you can't stand to lose, hold tight to your body when you sleep." She recited these, her rules of the street, as though a prayer, "Don't turn your back on anyone long enough they can stick a knife in it. Keep your eyes and ears closed; fight dirty_ – _I don't know what's worse, the things I've seen or the things I've done. And when all else fails, _run_."

Zack drew in a shaky breath, "Max, how could...how did...?"

"You know, it's amazing, how easy it is to slip away. One moment I'm there, in the middle of everyone, laughing and joking. The next I'm on the outside looking in. Did you even notice I was gone, Zack? Did you even miss me?"

With a pang of guilt, Zack recalled deciding all those years ago not to think about Max. After all, she wasn't his girlfriend, she wasn't any one important, so what did it matter if she didn't want to hang out with him anymore.

"Yes," he didn't realize he'd said it but when it reached his ears he knew it was true. He met her eyes, shimmering with pain and doubt, and confessed, "I missed you a lot."

Max let herself be swept away with the sorrow of so many hard years gone by, folding over herself in uncontainable sobs. For a moment, Zack let her cry freely, openly, unperturbed. Then when he couldn't bear it any longer, he scooted closer, pulled her into his arms – surprised when she didn't fight him – and held her tightly, as though he alone were her only brace against the torrential storm threatening to rip her to shreds.

* * *

A/N: Finally, the whole story comes out! Sort of...there were things that didn't get mentioned, like that her mother started dating the guy before her dad had passed (he was dying in the hospice...) and other little details that I never got into in the story. Overloaded on Zack/Max stuff yet? No? Good. Because there's more coming up...

Let me know what you think!


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17:

Zack let Max take a shower first as he waited anxiously on the couch watching T.V. and trying not to think about her – naked – in his bathroom. He'd given Max a change of clothes, some old t-shirt and sweats he hadn't worn in years and was pleasantly surprised to find still in his closet. He pretended to concentrate on the sitcom playing but the events of that day and that week, kept tumbling through his mind.

It was hard to believe that eight days ago he couldn't have been bothered to wonder whatever happened to Max, and now, he couldn't bear letting her out of his sight for more than five minutes. He couldn't figure out how he went six years without her in his life, thinking about it left him cold and hollow.

The door to the bathroom opened and he tried to feign interest in the show, as Max padded down the hall back into the living room. He could feel her stop behind him, the hair on his neck prickling on end, the fresh smell of soap and shampoo wafting into the room.

"You know you're watching a Spanish novella, right?"

Zack flushed. "Uh...si?" He muted the television, and asked, "You done?"

"Yup, you can go," Max replied. She looked better now, cozy and somehow purified of the day's confessions.

Zack let himself take in her image for only a few heartbeats, long enough to appreciate the way the wet locks fell round her smooth oval face without coming off as creepy. He disappeared down the hall and took his own shower. With thoughts of Max having been in there moments before invading his mind, he decided it best to keep the water temperature on the colder side.

Finished and dressed in his own lounge-wear, he made his way back into the living room to find Max was missing. Panic gripped him, a million horrible thoughts berating him at once: she'd left, she was gone, he'd done or said something wrong, he'd never see her again.

Then Zack realized his bedroom light was on and inside his window was open. He found Max sitting on the fire escape, there was a very tiny metal ledge just large enough for two to sit on with backs to the wall and legs dangling over. It connected Cody's and his window to a ladder down.

"Do you ever sit out here?" Max questioned, not bothering to look at Zack as he climbed out the window and squeezed into the space next to her. Their shoulders were flush and he reveled in the feel of her arm against his.

"Not really. It's nice. You scared me."

She turned to look at him, their faces close enough he could feel her breath on his skin.

"How?"

"I just..." he rubbed his neck with a hand and glanced away, "Thought you'd left."

"Oh." A calm hush settled over them. They peered down at the street below. "Zack?"

"Hm...?"

"What did you miss about me?"

Zack furrowed his brow, thought about it. "Competing."

"Yeah," she murmured, as though that were the answer she'd expected all along.

"Also..." he went on, demurely, "Hanging out, joking around, pranks, dancing," He closed his eyes, leaned his head back against the cool brick, "You know, you're the only girl I never had to try with."

"Uh...thanks?"

"No, really...every other girl, I've always had to try and be someone different to get her attention. I had to be more mature, suave, sophisticated, classy, hygienic," he opened his eyes and glanced at Max, "With you...I never had to try to be anyone but myself."

Max smirked, murmured, "That's a pretty good line. You should use it on the next 'hot thang' that walks by."

Zack frowned out at the night. "It's not a line, Max, it's the truth."

Max wrapped her arms around herself and shook from chill.

"Why aren't you wearing a sweater or something? It's cold out here?"

"I had to try."

"What?"

"I had to try," she repeated, "To get your attention. And even then it wasn't enough."

"Max, we were ten."

"I'm not talking about that."

"Then what are you talking about?"

"I don't know," Max mumbled, "Eight years ago. Seven years ago. Six years ago...right now."

Zack swallowed hard, warmth flooding his body. He looked to his companion, focused on the street below. She really was incredibly beautiful, he thought. He slid his hand up to rest on her lower back. She flinched, but didn't pull away.

Emboldened by that, he touched his chin to her shoulder, mouth bristling against her ear as he murmured, soft, uncertain, but honest, "Max, you always had my attention."

Hesitantly, she tilted her face to him, his hand curling round her waist, drawing her near. Soft green met doe brown. They both leaned in. Her lips were dry and chapped from the cold, but they were hers and he loved the feel of them against his own. He let that kiss remain chaste a moment, before massaging open her mouth and diving his tongue in. Her hand curled into his t-shirt and she shifted closer to deepen the contact.

Zack couldn't help thinking of their first kiss. It had been nothing like the one they now shared and everything like it at once. He could feel in Max; in her hands reaching for him, in her mouth on his, that same power and conviction and electric jolt that he had searched for in every other girl he had kissed since the day she'd grabbed his face and planted one on him on the basketball court.

When they broke apart, he touched his forehead to hers momentarily, listened to their erratic breathing, sharp pants; reveled in the heat sweltering between them, then dotted a few kisses down her jawline as she braced herself against him, hand on his shoulder and chewing her bottom lip, savoring the taste of him there.

"...bedroom," she murmured, he nodded agreement. Dizzy, he pulled himself to unsteady feet, and helped her up. They clambered through the open window, and once fully inside their mouths immediately crashed together again.

They moved clumsily towards the bed, her hands slid under his shirt to caress the warm flesh there and he shuddered, excitement racing up his spine. She removed the garment and, arm around her waist, he relieved her of the shirt she wore. He fell back to the bed and she tumbled on top.

"Excellent," he whispered, breathless, "Evens the playing field," he brushed her hair back and she smiled impishly down at him as he informed her, "You're too short."

She curled forward, trailed kisses along his collar bone, drawing a soft moan from the back of his throat, as her fingers toyed with the drawstrings of his sweats. His hands traced her back, he could feel every scar there, and he pressed an intense kiss to her lips.

"...do you..." she placed a kiss to the corner of his mouth, running her fingers through his hair to push it back and kissing his cheek, "...have...um..."

"...mmhm..." he murmured, working hot kisses along her neck and shoulder. He loved the smoothness of her skin, and the color, a golden bronze. "...stay..."

She flushed at the word, as he gently slipped out from under her and stumbled to the bureau. It was pushed to the back wall nearly obscured by a pile of laundry and knickknacks. She smiled at the disaster around her, thinking happily, God, he never changes. He dug around a moment in the top drawer, returned with a small crinkling package and, netting a hand behind her neck, kissed her hard and sweet.

Under the covers, and under him, she felt safe and warm in a way that she had forgotten after so long of feeling scared and cold and it was enough to make her cry. Max wrapped her arms round Zack's shoulders, burying her face in his neck as he entered her.

Deep within them stirred an emotion several years old and only a week tempered and when they collapsed, satisfied, it washed over them, a turbulent wave.

In the darkness, heartbeats later, Max lay on her belly, chin resting atop folded arms watching Zack, propped up on an elbow tracing the scars along her back. His soft gaze followed the path of his fingertips.

"They look worse than they really are," she told him, her voiced laden with exhaustion. He glanced up to her eyes, then back to the scars. "If they bother you, I can put on a shirt."

"They don't bother me." He dropped a kiss to her shoulder blade, fell back to his pillow and smiled at her. "Besides," he slid an arm under her belly, pulled her closer, pressed a kiss to her mouth, "I plan on keeping you naked for as long as I can."

She shook her head at him, smirked humorously, "I can't believe the little boy I used to play at the park with now hides condoms in his sock drawer." He shrugged response. "And where does Cody keep his? On his bookshelf between the science fiction and fantasy?"

"Please," Zack snorted softly, "Like Cody even needs them."

Max quirked a brow. "He's had more committed relationships than you but he's the one that's still a virgin?"

"This surprises you?"

Max sighed, burying her face in her arms.

"So...who was your first?" her voice was muffled. Zack stared up to the ceiling, a black canvas in the darkness of the room.

"A girl I met last year. The boat was docked in Spain. She was..."

Max peeked up at him. Though it hurt, she found herself smiling.

"...something else. Dark hair, light eyes...laughed a lot."

"She must have really meant something to you."

"Yeah, well, she was my first."

"What was her name?"

Zack swallowed hard, brow furrowing. He was quiet a long moment.

"Oh my god, you don't remember!" Max cried, swatting at him playfully.

"Ow! Hey! What? It was one night a year ago! And...I may have been drinking a little."

"You're such a..."

"Look, before you go thinking I'm a total sleaze, in my defense, _she_ seduced _me_."

Max raised a brow at that.

"All night this girl was feeding me drinks, and she kept spouting off lines like..." he sighed, "What if there's one person – and only one – for everyone and their two paths cross and its right but they can't be together because of circumstances keeping them apart? And what if it's the only one you can feel right with...your missing half, or something...and about how you can't let moments pass...or opportunities slip by because of..." he rubbed at his face, thoughtful, "I don't know...I don't remember the rest."

Max rolled her eyes.

"If it makes you feel better," Zack said, pulling her up on his chest and kissing her again, "I'll definitely remember your name."

Max rest her head against him, closed her eyes. She liked the feel of rising and falling with each breath he took, the way his arms draped over her.

"What about you?" he questioned. She smiled at the fear in his tone. "Who was yours?"

"Some guy," she answered wearily, catching his hand with her own and watching their fingers twine, "And unlike you, Mister Girl-in-Every-Port, I was actually dating him. We were together, like, seven months. Even lived together, for a little while. He was sweet. He had this tattoo...on his back...of this tree that just reached and stretched to forever. I loved it...I used to think I wanted one to cover my...you know."

"What happened? Why aren't you together anymore, I mean?"

Max yawned, wrapping her arms around Zack and settling herself comfortably atop him. "We got in a fight. He gave me a black eye."

"And you ran."

She said nothing. Her breathing was growing softer, steadier.

"Hey Max?" Zack whispered. He picked at a strand of her hair, curled it round his finger.

"Hn...?"

"Promise me you won't run again."

"...hm..."

"Promise me you'll stay...stay with me."

"..."

"Promise me, Max."

"...mm...promise..."

* * *

A/N: This was **the** hardest chapter for me to write. Sex scenes are hard enough to write when there aren't actors that play the characters to picture in your mind. Blech. I tried to keep it tasteful and not too detailed. If you're missing Cody, he comes back next chapter along with another goof on my part.

Also, I told you Max lied. She runs a lot.

Let me know what you think, please!


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: I was so glad of the feedback yesterday! The last chapter had me really nervous because I wasn't certain it would be a believable progression in their relationship. If it helps, Zack's confession "You always had my attention", was basically him telling her he always had feelings for her. Ah...yes, and skipping chapters: very bad! You miss important details...

* * *

Chapter 18:

Cody was a little disheartened to return home and find Max wasn't asleep on the couch. He peeked into Zack's room, in the darkness saw a form on the bed, and decided his brother was passed out for the night and he'd have to ask in the morning what happened to make her leave, though he assumed it had something to do with Zack opening his mouth and noise coming out.

At a loss for what to do for Max, Cody went to bed. He had stayed later than he planned at the library but Monday was a false holiday, some 'staff development' thing, so no school. Winter break was coming soon and the faculty was beginning to feel the laze of the coming vacation, positioning the days meant for improving faculty abilities closer to the fixed times off.

In the morning, he wasn't surprised his brother was still sleeping. Cody made himself breakfast, a bowl of cereal and watched the news. He was cleaning the dishes when the front door opened and he quickly darted a glance over his shoulder long enough to catch a glimpse of his mother walking in.

"Hey, mom," he greeted.

"Hi, sweetie, I have a surprise for you," Carey replied, smugly. He turned around and dropped the pan he was washing.

"Bailey?" Cody gaped at his girlfriend standing, with a bright grin on her face, beside his mother. He was across the room in an instant embracing her and she cried in surprise but returned the hug.

"Cody, I missed you so much."

"I missed you, too, Bailey, I can't believe you're here!"

Carey was happy for her son, but she moved in to break the teens up, motherly telling them, "Alright, that's a long enough hug."

They broke apart, smiling toothily at one another. Bashful, Cody asked, "Bailey, what are you doing here?"

"Our holiday break starts early, remember? We docked in Boston last night," Bailey explained, "I was supposed to fly home to Kettlecorn this morning, but I really wanted to see you and the last few times we spoke you just seemed so down. I talked to your mom and she thought it was a great idea, so I called my mom and asked if it was alright. She exchanged my tickets and now I'll be staying here for a few days."

"Technically, she'll be staying at the hotel with me," Carey amended.

"Really? That's so awesome," Cody exclaimed, tossing his arms around Bailey again.

"Okay, Cody," Carey cut in, tugging her son off his girlfriend by the collar and commanding, "Go wake your brother up, let him know we have a guest and are going for brunch in a bit."

"Sure, mom, great. This is the greatest," Cody cried, tossing his arms around his mother in passing. She patted his back and smiled at Bailey.

"Want something to drink, hon?"

"Oh, yes, please, Miss Martin."

Cody knocked slightly before entering Zack's room, closing the door behind him, while bearing in mind his brother's modesty and his girlfriend not needing to see an un-decent Zack so early in the day.

"Hey, Zack, wake up! Mom's home and you'll never believe..." He broke off, catching sight of the mass shifting to life on the bed. All he could do was stare, wide-eyed, mouth agape. Zack was beginning to sit up, Max rubbing at her face and braced against his bare chest.

"Cody...what are you...?"

"...mom...home" Cody stammered, unable to peel his eyes from the two teens tangled under covers and clearly lacking clothes.

"What? Mom's home," Zack hissed, "Oh shit! Max, we've got to get you out of here."

Max, face burning red and buried in his chest, mumbled agreement. "I don't know where my clothes..."

"You can take something of mine," Zack told her hastily then to his brother, "Will you go make sure mom doesn't come in here!"

"...I...uh..." Cody was blanched, his focus stuck on the very naked girl in the room.

"Do you think you could take the fire escape down?" Zack gently questioned Max, back to his brother, "Cody, go watch mom!"

"...Zack...Max...?" Cody babbled, brain finally processing the scene before him.

"Cody," Max growled threateningly, "_Get out_." And the harsh of her tone seemed to knock him from the daze.

"Uh...Right. Leaving." Cody made for the door, slipping out of it then suddenly slamming it shut. The teens left inside could hear him talking, fast and anxious, "Oh, hey, mom, what's up? What are you doing?"

"I was coming to check on you, see what was taking so long." Carey's voice drifted into the room, "Where's Zack?"

"...uh...I'm getting dressed, mom," Zack called out. He and Max were out of the bed now scouring the floor for clothes, wrapped in pieces of his bedding. Max picked something off the ground with a crinkled nose and he snatched it back, whispering, "No, not that."

"This is disgusting," she replied, "I think I prefer my own things, they've probably been washed more recently."

She tugged on some boxers he tossed her from the bureau drawer with an assurance that his mom always made sure his underwear was at least clean, and he pulled on some for himself. He picked up some jeans strewn across a mostly bare bookshelf and handed it over.

"Stick to the top layer," he advised, "It's the 'just worn' layer, so, it was hanging in the closet more recently."

There was a tap at the door and, white-faced, the two looked to each other.

"Still dressing mom..."

"Okay, well, I'm coming in. I want to talk to you," Carey said, the door handle began to turn.

"What...no..." Zack cried.

Max swiped a relatively clean looking shirt off the ground and rushed for the window, beginning out. She paused as Zack grabbed her arm.

"Cody's room." he hissed, and she nodded understanding, ducking out just as Carey walked in. "Mom, I'm not wearing any pants!"

"Sweetheart, I used to change your diapers. It's nothing I haven't seen."

"Mo-om!"

Max shimmied across the fire escape ledge, the cold immediately pricking at her bare skin. She jimmied Cody's room window open and tumbled inside, trying to sort out the garments in her hands. She froze, one leg in the jeans when she heard the door opening.

"...and this is my room," Cody was saying.

A pretty brunette walked in, hair in twin braids, and pearly whites shining bright. Max jerked up the jeans as best she could, fumbling to cover her still bare chest, the girl stopped dead upon seeing her, face falling, and Cody, who'd been watching out the door concernedly turned, spotted Max and fell back heavily, securely closing the door behind him with a resounding BANG.

"Cody, who is...?" Bailey began, turning to see her boyfriend staring wide-eyed at the half-naked girl in his room, "_Cody!_" She swatted at him and he startled, looking wildly to her then Max, then squeezing his eyes shut.

"I swear, I didn't see anything!"

"You saw everything, perv," Max snapped, hastily getting her arms into the shirt sleeves.

"Who _are_ you and...?" the other girl started demanding, "_Oh my God_, are those Zack's boxers?"

Max glared at her bewildered, and even Cody gave her a puzzled look. "You know Zack's boxers on sight?"

Bailey shrugged innocently, "What? We were roommates for, like, a day. It's kind of hard to share a space with him for twenty-four hours and not see _all_ of his underwear."

"It's true," Cody lamented. The door started to open again. Cody bounded over, catching and holding it mid-crack as Max hastened to dress. He squeaked, "Mom, what's up?"

"I was just wondering what that loud noise was. Are you and Bailey alright?"

"Yes, Miss Martin," Bailey came to stand at Cody's shoulder, effectively blocking the rest of the room, and she smiled out at the twins' mother, "We're fine. The window is open in here, and we left the door open a crack, so the imbalance in air pressure forced it shut."

Max gave the back of Bailey's head a strange look.

"Uh...okay. Imbalance in air pressure. Right." Carey said, "You two be good, I'll let you know when we're ready to leave."

Cody shut the door again, letting out the air from his lungs in a mighty whoosh.

"Oh, so you're Bailey. You're a lot prettier than I thought you'd be," Max commented.

"Um...thanks," Bailey replied, "But who are you?"

Cody opened his mouth to say something only for his brother's voice to float into the room from outside.

"Max..._Max_..."

Max ducked her head through the window then clambered out onto the fire escape again. Bailey and Cody hurried over and stuck their heads out. Zack was on the other side, leaning out his own window with tattered sneakers in his hands, which Max accepted.

"I was gonna make you breakfast, too..." Zack muttered.

"Aw...you were gonna pour me a bowl of Wheaties, you're so sweet," Max droned sarcastically. Zack smirked up at her.

"Hey, it would've been the best damn bowl of cereal you'd ever had," he replied, then he called across to his brother, "Cody, you got a pair of socks Max can borrow?"

Cody disappeared into his room and Bailey watched interestedly as he dug through his drawers.

"I need my beanie, too," Max told Zack.

"I think it's in the living room," he mumbled.

"Damn it. I need something to hide my hair."

"I've got a cap." Zack pulled back into his room and went digging through the wreckage as Max shuffled across the escape and took the socks Cody brought back with him. Zack returned with a Yankees baseball hat and Max gave him a hard glare.

"I'm gonna get my ass kicked wearing this, you know that, right?"

Zack rolled his eyes, taking the hat back and muttering, "Fine, I'll find the Red Sox. Jeez, you're so picky." He shot her a good-natured smile as he slipped back into the room and she blushed, shaking her head, and folding her arms over her chest. A moment later, he returned with a red baseball cap embroidered with a Gothic-style "B", he also had a sweater.

"Basketball courts. One," he told her firmly, as she took the things from his hands. She tossed the sweater over her shoulder, then twisting her hair up, secured the cap on her head, making sure to tuck in any lose strands. She bent to the window ledge, their faces close, eyes locked.

"Bring my things," she replied. He brushed a kiss to her lips.

"Just be there." he whispered.

The three teens at their windows watched as Max kicked down the escape ladder and deftly climbed to the street below. On the ground, she made certain all of her hair was still hidden and, glancing once back up to Zack, strode round the alley corner and out of sight onto the street beyond.

Bailey looked between the twins and seethed, "Alright, you two, _explain_."

* * *

A/N: I goofed in this chapter...well, on the story as a whole, sort of. My original plan had been that the timeline run to Winter Break, when Bailey would come visit...but I didn't get to that and...yeah...it didn't work with the rest of the story so I threw a Staff Developement day in there and hoped it didn't sound too forced.

Anyway, yay, Bailey is here! Sadly, her role won't be too important...I just wanted to bring her into the story. And originally, she had a bigger role, I think. Oh, I don't remember.

Let me know what you think!


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Very ridiculously short chapter...

* * *

Chapter 19:

It wasn't long after Max's departure when Carey called to the twins and Bailey that it was time to go. Their mother had quickly changed her clothes so by the time they were headed out the door, Cody had only managed to explain to Bailey that Max was an old friend from the boys' childhood. He promised to give her the details later.

The family walked to a little cafe down the street from the apartments, Bailey and Cody holding hands, and whispering amongst one another. Zack was surprisingly quiet while Carey prodded him with questions about school and friends. When they were set at a table, however, the mother's attention turned to Bailey.

"So how are things on the boat?" Carey asked. Bailey smiled pleasantly.

"Alright. Our last stop before Boston was the Virgin Islands," she answered, "They're so beautiful this time of year. Oh, that reminds me," she exclaimed to Cody and Zack, "I have souvenirs for the both of you and Christmas presents from Woody and Marcus."

Zack perked at the mention of the twins' former roommates, both good friends from the boat.

"How are they?" he questioned, "Last I spoke to Woody, you guys were docked in Japan. That was a couple months ago."

"They're great," Bailey said, "I think Woody went through a minor depression when you left, though, Zack."

"So did Zack," Cody muttered.

"But he's been spending all his time romancing Addison lately. I think they're close to being an official couple." Bailey gasped suddenly, "Speaking of official couples, you'll never guess."

"Uh...London and Marcus?"

Bailey giggled and shook her head, "Moseby and Tuttweiler!"

"Way to go, Moseby," Carey commented.

Though they had recognized the sexual tension between both adults when on the boat, the boys weren't sure how to respond to the idea of the Tipton's old manager turned boat concierge and their former teacher being intimate.

"Apparently they'd been hiding it for months," Bailey went on, "Until London caught the two_ in flagrante_ on a lifeboat, and you know her mouth, the news spread like wildfire."

"Man, all the fun stuff happens after we leave," Zack complained.

"Actually, the boat's been pretty calm since you both left," Bailey said, and Carey nodded as though that were to be expected. The waiter came to their table, setting out glasses of water, and took orders then Carey excused herself to the restroom.

Cody's foot jerked out and Zack hissed in pain, reeling forward to grasp his shin where it had connected. Bailey watched their exchange in confused silence, sipping at her water.

"Ow...what the hell..."

"I cannot believe you," Cody growled, "I knew you were a terrible womanizer but that you would take advantage of Max's situation..."

"It's not like that..." Zack protested.

"Really? Then what is it like?"

"I...well..." Zack searched for the words to explain how one thing had lead to another the night before but he was having trouble sorting it out.

"Great. That's just great. You know, it's always the same thing with you, Zack! Have you even considered Max's feelings?"

"Of course I..."

"And what about your girlfriend?"

"My...who...?"

"_Abigail!_"

Zack's mouth slammed shut and he ran a frustrated hand over his face. "Oh shit..."

"Let me guess, you forgot about Abigail. Why am I not surprised?"

"You don't understand..."

"What is there to understand? Vulnerable girl needs a place to stay, you think, 'hey, how 'bout my bed', forgetting the fact that she's in a rough spot and you're already committed to someone else. You're scum, Zack, the lowest kind of scum and I can't believe I share genetic code with you!"

"Cody, I..."

"Don't you think Max has been through enough already?"

Both fell silent when their mother returned, Cody leaning back and relaxing his angry features into a warm smile, and Zack slumping in his seat, eyes fixed on the table, swirling with an indiscernible ache.

"So, what'd I miss?" Carey asked, eagerly glancing between the teens.

Through the rest of brunch, Bailey and Cody kept the conversation going with Carey, Zack mulling in silence. When their food arrived he only picked at it, mumbling an excuse of not being very hungry. He trudged behind the others when they walked home and while Cody felt awful, he was somewhat glad his seemingly shameless brother seemed to be feeling the burden of regret for once.

Back in the apartment, Carey made her way to her bedroom, calling over her shoulder, "I have something I really need to talk to you two about, so don't go anywhere." As soon as her door closed, Zack made his way to leave.

"Where are you going, mom just said..."

"It's almost one, I have to meet Max," Zack muttered, not looking at Cody, "Just tell mom I needed to go and I'll be back soon. Besides, important talks from mom are usually about chores."

He was gone before his brother could find a response. Bailey leaned her head against Cody's shoulder, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

"You may have been a little too hard on him back at the restaurant," she admitted. Carey returned, and glanced around the room.

"Where'd Zack go?" she asked. The two teens shrugged. Carey shook her head, "It's fine. I'll talk to him about it later. It'll be better if I tell him alone. I'm sorry about this, Bailey, but I really do need to talk to Cody."

"It's okay, Miss Martin, I understand. Did you want me to...?"

"No, you can stay if you want...actually, Cody might need you here for this," Carey said quietly, then to her son, "You might want to sit down, honey."

Wary, both teens took a seat on the couch, and Carey settled onto the coffee table facing them. In her hand she had a folded paper which was most likely the reason she'd left to her bedroom.

"I didn't want to get in to this too soon, give you and Bailey time to catch up, but I don't really want to put it off for much longer either. Sweetie, I know you and Zack have been upset about your run-in with Max last weekend," Carey started hesitantly. Bailey shot Cody a questioning look and his body went rigid, "Well...I was on my way to work Friday night and I stopped at the store on my way and...well...I found this flier..." she unfolded the paper, handing it over. Cody took it but didn't look, "Sweetie...Max is a runaway."

She waited for his response but he gave nothing. Bailey tightened her grip on his hand.

"She's apparently been missing for four years."

Cody nodded stiffly. Lowered his eyes to the paper. It featured an old photograph of Max, she looked more like the girl he remembered from childhood, and less like the young woman that had slipped down the fire escape that morning.

"I already called the cops..."

Cody's eyes shot up, "You..._what_? Mom, no..."

"Cody, I had to...I don't want to assume what kind of trouble she's in but she needs to go home, get help," Carey argued, taken aback by her son's outburst. She narrowed her eyes at him. There wasn't much surprise in his expression just something...something...Carey folded her arms over her chest, "Cody. What do you know?"

Cody shifted, uncomfortable under his mother's intense, authoritative glower. He sighed, face falling, and said a silent apology to Max.

* * *

A/N: I forgot the other goof I made in the last chapter. Carey was going to come in and talk to Zack about Max (which was why she forced her way in while he was changing) but then I pushed it back to this chapter and decided she must have just wanted to ask him about his date with Abigail and left it because taking our her forcing her way into his room would have messed with the flow. Oh well.

Cat's out of bag. Let me know what you think!


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Thank you, thank you for the reviews! I'm glad everyone liked chapter 18, I was worried, because I could see it so clearly in my mind but I wasn't sure if the energy of the scenes was going to come through in the words correctly, so I'm glad everyone seemed to enjoy it. Thank you!

So...now that we know where Zack's heart is, it's time to rip it out.

* * *

Chapter 20:

Halfway to the courts, Zack realized in his rush to be away from Cody and near Max, he'd forgotten her things. He cursed softly under his breath but decided there was nothing he could do about it. He walked to the courts in a mental tirade, his thoughts a jumbled mess of last night and his brother's morning lecture.

Cody couldn't understand Zack's feelings, couldn't understand what had passed between him and Max. How could he? Zack barely understood it.

A few people were playing a game at the end of the courts, but for the most part, the area was relatively empty. Zack scanned for Max. Nowhere. He sighed, took a seat on the bleachers and rubbed the keel of his hands over his face. The past week had been too much, he wasn't used to it, he couldn't handle thinking about her not showing. She had promised not to run again, he concentrated on that, ignoring the nag in his mind that she had been half asleep when she'd said it.

When he looked up again, he saw Max approaching, though he didn't recognize her just his clothes. He got up and walked forward, only for her to shove him back angrily.

"I trusted you," Max hissed, darting her eyes around the court then fixing Zack with a hot glare. He returned it with one of hurt and confusion.

"Max...what are you..."

But she ignored him, ranting, "I'm such an idiot. I should've known better. How many times do I have to tell myself..." she shook her head, yelled at him, "I can't believe I thought that I could...that you...that I let you get so close...goddamn it, you asshole."

"I don't understand, what hap...?"

"You called the cops," she growled. Zack's eyes went wide. As a stabbing pain ripped into his chest, he thought of his brother.

"No, I swear..."

"They were _here_, Zack, they were _asking_ around about me. They were showing _my picture_ to people. God, I can't believe..." she cried, covering her eyes to hide the forming tears.

"Max, I didn't do it. I swear."

"The only ones who could have done it, who knew I was here, that knew me before, were you and Cody," she pointed out.

"Then Cody did it without telling me," Zack insisted, "I didn't, Max, you got to believe me."

"It doesn't matter," Max whimpered, shaking her head, and hiding her face, "I only came here to say good-bye."

Zack's heart dropped, "What?"

"I'm leaving."

"Leaving where?"

"Boston." Max looked up to him, cheeks damp. "I have to. They know I'm here. I have to go somewhere...somewhere else...where no one knows me."

"You can't," Zack pleaded.

"I can't go back," Max snapped. Zack stepped forward, took hold of her hand.

"Then I won't let them take you."

She pulled away, "What're you going to do? How are you going to stop them? You can't! This is the only way..."

"But you promised you wouldn't run again."

Something dark and hot flashed across Max's face and she raged, "Promised? Promised!" Her tone took on a nasty sarcasm, "I promise I won't run. I promise that I'll stay. I promise I'll never leave you. I promise I won't drink anymore. I promise I won't hit you again. I promise I'll never, ever, let anyone hurt you. I promise I'll protect you. I promise, I promise, I promise...let me tell you something about promises, Zack, promises are _made to be broken_!"

They fell silent. Zack stared, furious, at the pavement. Max wiped at the tears cascading down her face.

"We can figure something out..."

"I've already got it figured out. I'm leaving. There's nothing you can do about it. Just go back to your happy life, pretend I never existed. It's easier this way, trust me."

"Easier for who? I can't just forget about you, Max," Zack argued, locking eyes with her. He grasped for something, anything, "Make a bet with me."

"What? Zack..."

"You'll need money, won't you? To get wherever you need to go. Make a bet with me."

Max glared into the distance, folded her arms over her chest, and chewed her bottom lip. Zack wanted to reach for her, touch her, but he stayed where he was, hands balled into fists at his side.

"Two-fifty," she said.

"One hundred," he replied.

She sniffed loudly, "Two hundred."

"One-fifty."

"I won't do it for less than two hundred."

"Fine," Zack grumbled, "Two hundred then. What are we playing?"

"You're shooting for free throws."

"Alright. If I can make five..."

"Ten."

Zack shuffled uncomfortably, glanced to Max. "Okay. If I can make _ten_ free throws in a row you'll stay, come back to the apartment with me, and figure something out." Max opened her mouth to protest but he cut her off, "If I miss...then I'll give you the money and..." the vice on his chest was unbearable, "...and let you leave."

Max pursed her lips, her jaw stiff, her shoulders tense. "Deal."

There was an ATM across the street. Zack pulled out the cash for Max to see, trying not to think about how pissed his mother would be when she saw the withdrawal amount, and shoved it in his pocket. Then Zack paid the boys on the far court a twenty for their ball. A cold wind kicked up as he took a stance at the free throw line facing the net, nervously bouncing the ball on the blacktop. Max stood to the side watching with her arms folded.

Coach was obsessed with free throws and for once in his life, Zack was glad the basketball Nazi made the team drill them every practice. He let the first shot soar and felt a bit of elation as it sailed into the hoop; nothing but net. It rolled to Max and she scooped it up and passed it to him. The next three shots went in just as easy.

The pressure was building and Zack could feel it pushing down on him. He took a few steadying breaths, closed his eyes for a moment, and dribbled the ball a couple times. He shot, it bounced off the backboard and fell heavy through the net. He quickly dismissed the satisfied smile tugging at his mouth.

"Five more," he told Max. She said nothing, retrieving the ball for him.

The next shot rolled teasingly along the rim before falling through the hoop and rolling back to Zack. He scooped it up, trying to hide the way his hands were shaking as he bounced it against the pavement. He glanced to Max, her face carved in an apathetic expression, watching him expectantly. The net rippled with the next shot as the ball fell through.

Max was chewing her lip again.

Zack wiped his sweating palms on his pants, let soar the next shot, and swallowed back his emotions when it fell through the hoop.

"That's eight," he mumbled, more to himself than the silent girl on the sidelines. When the ball was back in his hands, he gripped it tight between palms, closed his eyes, and pleaded to every deity he could think of and a few he was sure he made up.

The ninth free throw fell through the net and he grinned at Max. She held up a finger to indicate the one shot he had left to make. He retrieved the ball, dribbled it back to the free throw line. His vision was bleary, the cold nipping angrily at whatever skin he had exposed; his face, neck, hands. His arm, the injury several days old now, was starting to sting. He ran an errant tongue over his lips, bounced the ball several times. Paused. Bounced it again, trying to relax.

They both watched – faces awash with torn emotions – the ball as it arched, painfully slow, through the air. Its sound hitting the pavement echoed in their ears.

-0-0-0-

Carey didn't like the looks of the basketball courts when she walked up towards them and she found it hard to believe and slightly disconcerting that her sons frequented the area. There weren't many people around, and she spotted Zack easily; alone, shooting free throws using an old, ragged looking ball. She stopped at the sidelines, watched him a few moments. His expression was hard, intense. She didn't like the mood radiating off him.

"Where's Max?" she finally asked. He glanced at her, dark and wary; shot another free throw. She put her hands in her jacket pockets, shuddered against the breeze. "Honey...tell me where..."

"I don't know." He spat. Picked up the ball and demanded, "My backstabbing jerk doppelganger tell you she was here."

"Hey, now, watch yourself, young man. I don't want to hear you talking about your brother like that."

"Why? It's what he is! He ratted Max out to the cops, to you..."

"Zack, Cody didn't call the cops. I did."

Zack grasped the ball tight enough to turn his fingers bone white. He slung it through the air and it smacked against the back board, rebounded past Zack, hitting the black top hard and bouncing away towards the bleachers. Carey didn't flinch.

"How the hell could you?" he cried, reeling on her.

"Because it was the right thing to do."

"The right thing to do," Zack scoffed, "How the hell do you know what the right thing to do is? What gives you the right to decide what's right for her? Huh?"

Carey blinked, trying to wrangle in the growing anger at her son's disrespect, "Well, I happen to be the adult, and your mother. Suffice it to say I have a few more years experience handling bad situations like this than you."

"You have no idea what this situation is! You have no idea what you've even done," he seethed.

"Hey, now, buddy, I'm trying to be patient here with you," Carey warned, she sighed, lightened her tone again, "Look, I get that you care about Max, sweetie. But she's a young, pretty girl who ran away from home. I hate to assume anything because I liked Max, but she falls into a category of girls that are just bad news."

Zack was shaking his head as she spoke and the motion grew more furious with each word his mother spoke until he burst out, "You're wrong. You don't know anything about it! You don't know anything about her," he turned away, ran a hand over his face, "It doesn't matter anyway, none of it matters. She's gone."

Carey straightened considerably at that, "What do you mean?"

"I had her...she was here..." Zack mumbled, "And I lost her. She's leaving town to...I don't know where...and..." he looked over his shoulder to his mother, his eyes despairingly hollow, "...and because of you, the last thought she'll ever have of me is that I betrayed her."

"Zack..." Carey mourned, she took a few steps towards her son, placed a hand on his shoulder, "I had to call the cops. She needs to go home."

He jerked away from her touch.

"Don't you get it? That's the last place she needs to go," he yelled, "After what they've done to her there..." Carey's brow raised at that. He shook his head firmly, "No. I won't let them take her back. I won't."

"Zack...what are you..."

"I'm going to find her. I'm going to keep her safe," Zack vowed, turning on heel and taking off across the black top.

"Zack, come back here, right now! You can't..." Carey cried, but her pleas fell on deaf ears. She watched, helpless, her son's retreating form as he sprinted out of sight.

* * *

A/N: I don't know why Zack has so much money. He worked on the boat and didn't have anywhere to spend it so it just got put in savings, maybe.

Let me know what you think!


	21. Chapter 21

A/N: Another short chapter...

* * *

Chapter 21:

The only other place Zack could think of to search for Max besides the basketball courts was the theater-house. He wandered the different streets and alleyways, knowing it was futile, but unable to give up hope that she'd be standing round the next corner he turned. There were a lot of vagrants roaming the area and eventually he came across a face he did recognize. One of the boy's from the basketball game, Sunday, still wearing the same yellow shirt. He stood in a group of suspicious looking boys. Mustering courage, Zack carefully approached.

"Excuse me," he began and was shot daggers from all the boys.

"Who the fuck are you?" yellow-shirt demanded. Zack shifted awkwardly.

"I know that you know Max. I played basketball against the both of you last weekend," he said. Yellow-shirt gave Zack a once over.

"You one of the twins?"

"Yeah," Zack could barely hide the relief he felt at the boy's recognition, "Yes, me and my twin were there. I was wondering if...if you've seen Max? Or you knew where I could..."

"Can't help you," yellow-shirt interrupted.

"Will you just hear me out, please?"

"If you're looking to get money from the guy, get in line," one of the other boy's snapped, "Max hussles and scams a lot of idiots, you're not the only one."

"I don't want money," Zack cried, "I just want to know where Max is."

Zack didn't like the way they were now staring at him and he took a subconscious step back.

"Max might be a con and a thief," yellow-shirt bit out through grit teeth, "But he's still one of us and it'll take a lot more than a 'pretty please' from a pretty boy for us to rat him out."

"Okay. I appreciate you're street loyalty and code of honor and whatever...but...I don't want to hurt Max. I just want to talk to he – er – him."

They all looked skeptical. Zack shifted his weight from foot to foot. He sighed, _this is getting to be an expensive day_, tugged his wallet from his pocket and produced a ten note, held it up for the boys to see. Yellow-shirt attempted to look unimpressed.

"I might know something," he hinted. Zack growled softly, produced another ten. Nothing but glares. Another ten came from the wallet. Yellow-shirt snatched the money, "I haven't seen Max in a few days but you might find him at Saigon Alley, the abandoned warehouse behind the old theater-house on Main and Third. He squats there sometimes."

"That's all you've got," Zack cried, frustrated.

Yellow-shirt shrugged, "Snow season's coming. He might've hopped a bus for warmer terrain."

"Never has in the past," one of the other boy's commented, "I don't know what he loves so much about Boston. If I could hussle like him, I'd'a hightailed it outa here years ago and never looked back. In the winter, it gets colder out here than a hooker's pussy."

Zack made a face and nodded. "Uh...yeah...okay. Thanks." He hurried back towards the theater-house. Saigon Alley was the best lead he had and if she wasn't there – his heart constricted – he didn't want to think about it.

A crowd was gathering round the theater-house, the five o'clock showing of _Guys and Dolls_ was starting soon. Zack rushed through the mass of designer clad people, working his way around to the back of the theater.

"Zachary," a high-pitched squeal pierced his ears. He froze, the bottom of his stomach fell out. Slowly he turned to face the fuming young woman dressed up in a Marc Jacobs lacy dress, and Coach heels.

"A...Abby," he stammered.

"I have just about had it with you," Abigail screamed, a few people looking curiously at the two teens, "First you disappear on our date. You don't return a single one of my phone calls. Then I see you at the coffee shop with _another girl_!"

Zack arched his brow, confused, "I wasn't at the..."

"And I am so sick and tired of your pathetic excuses! Do you know what I have been through the past few days? Can you even begin to imagine how heartbroken I've been? I almost didn't go for my weekly mani-pedi because of you!"

Zack made a face, "Abby..."

"Look at who I'm talking to! You are such a guy. As if you could even fathom what heart break even feels like! To be so devastated you consider breaking your diet to devour a pint of chocolate ice cream. To not even want to put on make-up or do your hair because you just keep thinking 'what's the point, not like he cares'!"

"I...uh...can't say that I...no..." Zack furrowed his brow, grimaced.

"Have you any idea how much pain I go through to look _this_ beautiful? For my boyfriend to not even be there to compliment me! I just don't understand. I give and I give and I give and I get nothing in return from you!"

"Abby, I..."

"Do you know how hard I try for you? And nothing. No effort! I am so forgiving, and so caring, I give you all my adoration and you don't even have the decency to call when I tell you to! But not this time. I'm not forgiving you for anything less than shiny, fashionable, and 24 karat."

"_What_? Abby..."

"Don't give me that look! What did you expect? I can't accept all your apologies for free. You need to start showing me that you care! I mean, you _do_ care about our relationship, don't you?"

"Well...no."

"Because sometimes I really get the feeling that...what did you say?" In an instant, all the anger dissipated from her face.

Zack took a deep breath, studied a spot on the cement and told her, "I really don't care about our relationship."

"Wait...how can you...what do you...but don't you...don't you care about me?"

"I'm sorry, Abby. I thought I did. I really thought I did. But...I don't."

Zack barely felt it when Abigail's hand struck across his cheek, all he could think of was how much more the slap had stung when it had been Max's hand.

"How can you say that? Didn't I mean anything to you?" Abby demanded.

"I don't know. No. I don't think you did. I'm so sorry Abigail. I thought I knew what a meaningful relationship was...what it was supposed to feel like...what it was supposed to look like...and now..." he shook his head, "I'm sorry. You deserve so much better than me. You deserve someone who feels..."

This way, he thought, the ache in his chest growing with each second of not knowing where Max was that passed.

"...feels like they can't be without you. And I know that you'll find that person, Abby, but it's not me."

"You cannot possibly be breaking up with me."

"But I am. And I'm sorry, I should've treated you better but maybe now you'll find someone who will."

Abby set an icy glare on him and seethed, "Oh, I know that I can do ten times better than you, Zachary Martin. I can throw a stone and hit someone better than you who would trip over himself to be on my arm. But you? You will never find a girl better than me."

"I don't need to," he murmured, finishing mentally, _I just need to find Max_.

Abigail made to slap him again but pulled back last minute. She tossed her hair over a shoulder, turned her nose up, spun on heel and breezed away as though nothing had ever happened. Zack watched her part for only a second, before she faded from his mind, and he was rushing off again.

* * *

A/N: I like writing Abby. She's not apologetic or easily swayed. I would almost feel sorry for her except she doesn't even feel sorry for herself; just flips her hair and moves on.

Let me know what you think!


	22. Chapter 22

A/N: I'll be posting the last chapters today...I know, so sad. There are three of them, but they're all fairly short. Thanks for the reviews, you guys, awesome comments as always!

* * *

Chapter 22:

Carey didn't have to drive to many bus stops before she came across a lone figure dressed in her son's familiar garments. It was clear from their baggy swampiness that they didn't belong to the person wearing them. She parked her car on the roadside and slowly walked towards the stop.

When she was close enough to cause alarm, brown eyes snapped on to her face, wearing an expression akin to a rabbit readying to bolt. Carey held her hands up, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible.

"Max," she called out, "Just stay calm..."

The girl twitched slightly; she flickered a glance down the road, weighing her options.

"I know that you're scared and you don't trust me, but I promise, I'm not here to turn you in, or make you go anywhere. I just want to talk," Carey continued, slowly moving forward, uncertainly she questioned, "Do you remember who I am?"

"Yes," Max snapped, then in a gentler tone, "You're Zack and Cody's mom."

Carey nodded. "My boys are really worried about you."

"Well aren't I special. You know, I was living a pretty decent life before everyone started worrying about me."

Carey took a seat on the bench several inches from Max. The young girl brought her sweater covered hands up to her face, shuddered somewhat.

"As I understand it, you've been living on the streets."

"The boys tell you that."

"No. They didn't need to. I found a 'Have You Seen Me' flier with your face on it." Carey glanced apologetically at the girl, "I should tell you, Zack and Cody didn't call the police. I did. They didn't even know I did it and, for your sake, they were both pretty upset about it."

Max didn't reply.

"Zack did, however, tell me that you don't want to go home."

"I don't have a home."

Again, Carey nodded. "And why do you say that?"

"Because a home is where you feel safe, where you feel loved, where you're wanted."

"You don't feel that way at home with your parents?" Realization was beginning to seep in.

Max sniffed, burrowed deeper into the sweater. "I did once. Not anymore. My dad is gone, my mom drinks all the time, and her boyfriend..."She paused, flicked away a stray tear, "...I mean, her new husband. I forgot, they married a couple years ago when I had thought I could go back...I was wrong. They were married and she was pregnant. I don't know why it surprised me at the time. She always chose him over me."

"I see. So this new husband...he's not a good step-father?" Carey ventured.

"He's not a good anything."

"Right."

They fell silent. A kick of wind rustling their clothes, and dragging debris down the street. It was going to be a harsh winter, the chill already biting. Carey tried to imagine spending four years in that kind of weather, with no warm sanctuary to crawl into when the cold became too much. She glanced at Max and, taking in the small girl's huddled form, smiled softly.

"You know," she started wistfully, "When I was still married to the boys' father, Kurt, and he was away on tour with the band, I would take one of his shirts and do what you're doing right there..." she pointed at the way Max held the sweater sleeves to her face, "...with Zack's sweater."

Max dropped her hands to her lap and glared away, biting her lower lip.

"I must say, you've really done a number on my son."

"Sorry, didn't mean to," Max muttered, and she sounded genuine.

"No, it's alright. I'm kind of relieved, actually. I was beginning to worry there was something wrong with him in his attitude towards girls." Carey admitted, with a light laugh. It felt forced.

Max smirked momentarily.

"He really cares about you. I think a lot more than he realizes."

Max flushed, fidgeting with the sweater cuffs.

"You know, I admire you, Max. It is so hard to be completely alone in the world. I cannot imagine what you have been through in these past years...but I know I could not have done what you have." Carey sighed. "You know I'm thinking there was something you found to be so much harder, wasn't there?" Max shifted slightly. "Admitting you need help."

"But I don't," Max cried, "I can handle myself!"

"By running away. Again. I'm curious, what happens when you have finally run away from everything and you have nothing left? Because, you know, when you run away from the bad things, Max, you also run away from the good."

Silence.

"When you ran away that first time, you left behind a lot of things. Sure, one of those things was a bad situation, a family that treated you badly. But you also left behind friends, people who cared about you, you left behind the things you loved to do, you're future; you left school, Max."

"I know what I gave up."

"And you can do it all over again? Give everything up, just like that? Go somewhere new, start over from scratch? You know, Max, you're leaving behind something else this time, something you never had before. A second chance. Can you give that up? Give up a new future, a new hope; give up the friends that found you, that still care about you?"

Again, silence.

"...give up Zack?"

Max sniffled, ran a sleeve across her eyes, turned away. "I don't have a choice."

"You always have choices, Max. You can run away or you can stay and fight. You can stand alone or you can ask for help, and I assure you, that if you ask, there are, at least, two boys I know of more than ready to give it. And there is also me. I can help you, Max, you just have to ask."

Max buried her face in the sweater, in Zack's scent, and for a moment, she felt as safe and comforted as she had lying in his arms.

"And what kind of help can you give me?" she questioned, with a terrible croak.

Carey smiled, took hold of Max's hand, and gave it a kind squeeze.

* * *

A/N: I kind of felt bad that everyone was so mad at Carey...she made the right choice given the amount of information she had on the situation. It was alright though, because I also knew Carey would be redeeming herself in this chapter.

Give me your opinions, please.


	23. Chapter 23

A/N: I really wish I'd done more with Bailey and Cody...if I were to write a sequel, it would focus more on them.

* * *

Chapter 23:

Zack returned home cold and disparate. He had spent hours in the growing harsh winds searching the lowliest, grimiest places of the city, to no avail. It didn't help that all he could think was that these were the very places in which Max had spent the past four years of her life sleeping and taking shelter.

Inside the apartment, Zack found Cody and Bailey huddled together, talking intently on the couch. It seemed the younger twin was filling his girlfriend in on the past week's events. She looked grieved, and held Cody's hands tightly. They startled apart when the door opened and relaxed somewhat when they saw Zack walking in.

"Where have you been?" Cody carefully questioned, worry evident in his tone, shamefaced and eyes downcast.

Zack shook his head as reply. He entered the kitchen area, opened the refrigerator, then shut it without so much as looking inside.

"Where's Max?" Bailey braved question.

With a surge of anger, Zack slammed the refrigerator door with an open palm and the other two teens jumped at the noise it caused. He turned and slumped against it, then, folding his arms across his chest, glared at the tiled floor.

A few heartbeats passed. Bailey rose from the couch and hesitantly made her way to the kitchen. She put a hand on Zack's shoulder, but he didn't look at her. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm sure she's okay."

He snorted softly, shook his head, but his features eased. Cody came to stand at the kitchen entry, a hand resting on the counter.

"Zack, about what I said earlier. I'm sorry. I know that you would never hurt Max, and I shouldn't have..."

"It doesn't matter," Zack muttered, then sniffing, said a bit louder, "It's alright, Cody. You were right." He smirked bitterly at his brother, "I am scum." Cody furrowed his brow but said nothing and looked away with an unreadable expression. "Max thinks I am, anyways. It was pretty easy for her to just walk away from me."

"Zack...you really care about her, don't you?" Bailey murmured sympathetically yet her tone was underlined with surprise. Cody came closer, taking Bailey's hand in his own and watching his brother with concern. The couple didn't know what to say, they'd never seen the other boy so utterly heartbroken.

With a bit of noise that exploded through the quiet apartment, the front door opened and, startled, the teens turned to it.

Carey was first to enter, she gave Bailey and the boys a grim smile, widened the door, and Max shuffled in, hands shoved deep in her pockets, and eyes on the floor.

Exclamation sounded through the room.

Zack moved forward, pausing in the dining area when those hard doe eyes lifted to meet his.

"Hey."

"I'm sorry, Max, for...I don't even know what. Everything," Zack rambled quickly, "Everything about me. I know I'm not the best guy...hell, my own brother thinks I'm scum," Cody flinched at that, "But I will do anything to be someone that..."

Max moved towards him hesitantly as he spoke then placed her hands on his sides to silence him. She looked up to his face.

Faltering, he quietly admitted, "I thought I would never see you again."

"It's okay, Zack," she told him. She took a haggard breath and unsteadily breathed whisper, "I'm in trouble...and I...can't handle it alone. I need help."

Zack nodded, he brought his forehead down to touch hers, closing his eyes and just relishing her presence. Bailey rested her head against Cody's shoulder and Carey, antsy to be the worrying mother, let the two have their sweet reunion for just a moment, before speaking up.

"I'm not going to get into how you boys should've come to me first, but Max and I have spoken about everything and, as I understand it, she has some very good reasons for not wanting to go back to living with her parents. Obviously, I can't leave her on the streets. So we've, come to a compromise. Max is going to be staying with us."

Zack turned his attention to his mother while taking Max's hands in his own.

"Really? Mom, are you serious?"

The declaration seemed to be all it took to break his dour mood as he looked between his mother and Max, and both gave nods of their head.

"This is so awesome." he grinned, "She can share my room." Max rolled her eyes and Carey gave a mock laugh.

"That's a nice try, mister. By staying with us, I mean me. At the suite. Oh...Bailey, I hope you don't mind sharing a room for the next few days that you're here?"

"Of course not, Miss Martin," Bailey piped cheerfully, she grinned at Max, "There's no way you can be worse than my drama queen roommate on the boat."

"And there's no way you can be worse than the boys I squatted with on Saigon Alley," Max returned.

"Now, I've already gone over all the details with Max and she knows this isn't a free hand out," Carey took over again, "Because she has less than one year before she turns eighteen I'll be speaking with a lawyer in the morning about getting her emancipated."

Zack made a face, obviously confused.

"Sort of like being legally fast-forwarded from a kid to an adult," Cody whispered explanation to his brother, who formed a silent "oh" with his mouth.

"I'm going to get a job so I can pay for my own things," Max said, "Like food, clothes, rent."

"She also had to get her G.E.D.," Carey added.

"G.E.D.?" Zack questioned.

"Kind of like a high school diploma," Bailey answered.

"Oh. Great! I'm almost done with high school, I can help you with your studies," Zack exclaimed, and Max looked uncertain. Cody shook his head.

"You can study with me, Max."

"And, also," Carey went on, moving forward to put her hands on Max's shoulders, "Max has agreed not to run away anymore."

"And I promise not to break this promise," Max teased, though there was a sorrowful note to her words. She sank against Zack and he wrapped his arms around her.

Zack glanced to his mother, "Thanks."

She nodded, gave them a few seconds, then clapped her hands together.

"Alright, I was thinking..."

Max pulled away slightly and all eyes turned on Carey.

"That you would need clothes, Max. And I'm sure Zack will want his only clean pair of jeans back," Carey announced, "So, I thought we could go shopping, I can buy you some outfits..."

"I don't want to burden..." Max started. Carey silenced her with a hand.

"We'll call it a loan. You can pay me back for everything when you can," she said, then gleefully to herself, "Besides, I've always wanted a daughter I could dress up...Cody stopped letting me put him in girl's clothes when he was five."

Cody's eyes flashed up, "_Mom!_"

Bailey covered a smile then said, "Oh! Clothes shopping, count me in!" She pranced across the room, taking hold of Max's arm – successfully tearing the girl from Zack – and leading her towards the door, "You have to let me pick you out a dress. You would look so cute in plaid..."

"Uh...okay...I think I'd like that. I'm not very up-to-date on fashion. I haven't really gone shopping in awhile..."

"Let me grab my purse," Carey was saying, "Bailey, do you have a coat?"

"Wait, you're going _now_? But Max just got here," Zack protested. Cody came to stand at his shoulder wearing the same helpless expression.

"But Bailey, I thought you were in Boston to spend time with me..."

Carey shut the door with a click behind the parade of departing women, leaving the boys alone and slightly confused.

After a moment, Zack looked to his brother and asked, "You want to play Guitar Hero?"

* * *

A/N: Someone (they know who they are...) kept expressing that Max should have filed for emancipation all those years ago, I didn't want to address it because I had already written this chapter and knew Carey would be taking her to petition emancipation. But now I will. Yeah, she did have a good case for emancipation, except, you have to remember, that when all this crap started happening to Max she was eleven, and she ultimately ran away at 13. Understand, that there is more to emancipation then just proving you should be separated from your parents' guardianship; the minor also has to demonstrate that she is financially capable of sustaining herself, and also, while the rules vary from state to state, some places have the age set at 16 for a minor to be able to petition emancipation. Max wasn't and she couldn't. More than likely, if Max had attempted to take legal action against her mother and the boyfriend at the time, there would have been an investigation by Child Protective Services and she would have been put into the foster care system as a warden of the state, with her mother most likely ordered to take counseling if she wanted her daughter back. While the media representation of foster care as a whole is not entirely accurate, there is truth to it being a poor place for children who get shuffled from home to home, sometimes ending up in places that are worse than the one they originated.

Of course, the real reason Max didn't attempt to bring in the law, of course, lies more within her character. She didn't want to admit to anyone she couldn't handle her own problems.

Anyhoo, one last chapter left. Sorry if it seems rushed, I'm not good at ending things. I'm also a bit of a sucker for happy endings. ;)

Drop a line, tell me what you thought!


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24: Epilogue

The bed felt empty. At least, that was Zack's first thought as his eyes peeled open to the kohl black of his bedroom. He propped himself up and ran a hand along the other side of the mattress, frowning, then slipped out of the covers and into the living room. He found her there, sitting on the worn sofa they had bought used from E-Bay for fifty dollars.

"Max?" he called, edging slowly into the room. She stirred at his voice, watching him approach from the corner of an eye. Her hair fell around her face; her slender body shivered from the chill of the room, she wore only a thin silken nightgown, and her feet were bare.

Zack paused and his heart dropped when he saw the pack Max clutched in her lap. It had been a year and half since the Martins had brought her in from the streets, three months since the two had moved into the apartment – finally, their own place – but she still kept that tattered bag filled with essentials always – _always_ – by the doorway.

..._promises are made to be broken._

It left a hollowness inside his chest. He spent nights wondering, after every fight, after every let down, every disappointment, as stress ran high and decisions, commitments, had to be made, if – _when_ – she would break that promise.

It pounded in the back of Zack's mind, that incessant question: When would Max run?

"The bad dreams, again?"

Max stiffened her shoulders, her fingers toying with the frayed straps of her pack. Zack slipped onto the coffee table – a present from his mother – in front of her but he made no other moves; just watching, waiting.

"No, not the dreams." She swallowed hard, lay her hands over the pack, "I was thinking about my father...and my mother. You know, before..."

Zack nodded, remained silent.

"You know...back then, I used to think that _that_ was how things were always going to be. My dad, my mom, me. Then my dad got sick." She sighed. "I thought I could separate myself from it...that I could lock the bad things away from the good."

"Didn't work."

"I didn't mean to push you away, Zack," Max whispered, finally meeting his eyes, her own brimming with unshed tears, "When we were kids I wanted to keep you separate from all the bad things. I wanted to keep one thing untainted...but then it all just started to consume me and..."

"It's alright, Max. It's in the past."

"No, it's not," she argued and ran a finger under her eyes to swipe away the dampness there, "I feel like I'm still running."

Zack felt a cinch on his heart. They had been through this so many times; her claustrophobia, her inability to sleep on a bed, her packrat habits – he found food stashed in the strangest places, every little thing she had to relearn about living indoors. He took a deep breath. Told himself, they had made it through all those rough patches before and with very little scars.

"Well, we talked with my mom about you going to speak to that therapist and I know you said you didn't want to..."

Max shook her head emphatically, plucking at the bag again.

"Then what, Max? I'm not..." Zack leaned forward, propped an elbow on his knee and buried his face in a palm, "You know that I'm not very good at this."

"I was thinking..." she sniffled loudly, combed the hair out of her face, "That maybe it was time...time to get rid of this bag."

Zack perked up, straightening considerably, at that statement. It was the glimmer of hope he'd been waiting and yearning for since that first break-down the week after she'd moved in to the Tipton suite.

"You don't have to." Even though the words had spilled from his lips, he didn't understand what was meant by them. He wanted the pack gone, he hated it. Why would he give her this out?

"I know that it bothers you." Max confessed.

"And _I_ know that it makes you feel better."

Max lowered her face, chestnut tendrils silting forward to shadow her features.

"It used to," she said, "Whenever I felt that urge inside me, that anxious ticking, like a bomb ready to explode, I knew this bag was there. I could pick it up, put it on, and be gone." Zack tried to keep his face stoney, to hide the emotions her words stirred within him. "I knew it was there and that was enough to stop the tick."

"Does it...not help anymore?"

"No."

Zack slumped forward, defeated. Max put the pack aside and cupped her hands on his neck. Their faces were close, her words bristling his nose.

"Because the ticking is gone."

He looked up at her through blond strands, soft green settling on doe brown.

"I think I've finally found my home." She smiled, "It's with you, Zack."

"I love you," he told her, heartrendingly earnest.

She leaned forward, their lips touching, and murmured, "I love you, too."

He deepened the kiss, a gentle caressing of mouths, honest and without expectation and when they parted, he rested his forehead to hers.

"Come back to bed, Max," he whispered, breathless as her kisses always left him. She nodded response and with ease he swept her tiny figure up into his arms.

The pack stay on the couch, weathered memories etched into its fiber. In the morning, Max would empty it, then Zack would box it up along with a tattered pair of sneakers, a red beanie, a yellowing envelope with money inside for a childhood friend, and an old, ragged basketball that had cost him twenty dollars and nearly the love of his life.

The End

* * *

A/N: Just a short, sweet, fluffy epilogue to wrap up the last lingering emotions. I have an idea for a sequel, don't know if I'll write it, but it would place after this time with the boys in college. I'm torn between wanting to write it and having other things to focus on. I kind of want to because I really want to explore all the relationships more and I would love to be able to write Bailey/Max friendship bonding moments, because I think they would get along really well. I'd also have opportunity to bring in other characters like Moseby, London, Maddy, etc.; since Max would most likely be working at the Hotel.

Anyhoo, the summary for a sequel would be something like: Under the stress of college life, Cody contemplates taking his relationship with Bailey to the next level, while Zack and Max must overcome the demons of their past if they're to find a bright future together.

Max's mom would also make an appearance. I don't know, we'll see.

I have to confess, this story was inspired by a dream. Remember how I said I was never much of a Suite Life viewer...yeah, out of the blue I had a dream about the show (hadn't even seen a commercial for it in several months), about the boys finding Max homeless on the streets. All I recall of the dream was that they were in a bagel shop in Boston (which was creepy because at the time, I didn't know where the show took place). I told myself it would make a great story but I had a lot going on so I wasn't sure I should write it. Haunted by the story, I made myself a deal, if I look up the show and it does take place in Boston, I'll take that as a sign I'm meant to write the story and if it doesn't, I'll forget I ever had the dream. Obviously, you're all big fans of the show, so you know how that ended up.

So, now you know. And if I keep writing this author's note, it'll be longer than the chapter. So I'm wrapping it up. This is the last update, last chance to let your voice be heard! Tell me what you think or forever hold your peace.


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